Cervical spondylotic myelopathy is a disease entity which occurs as a complication of chronic degenerative changes in the cervical spine. A thesis is developed regarding its etiology and proposes that the symptoms and signs of the disease result from the interaction of critically large chondro-osseous spurs in an abnormally small cervical spine canal with motion. Chronic asphyxia of the Schwann and neuronal cells is also contributory. Detailed evidence to support this thesis is presented. A rationale for the surgical treatment of the disease emphasizes bone remodeling phenomena after motion is eliminated by anterior fusion.
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Robinson et al. (1977) studied this question.