Neurosurgical intervention for cervical disk disease in dystonic cerebral palsy

We report five young patients with athetoid-spastic cerebral palsy who had deteriorated neurologically. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to investigate suspected compressive cervical spine lesion. Cervical spondylosis with disk protrusions was found in all patients. Four patients underwent surgery by an anterior approach with insertion of a bone graft resulting in substantial clinical improvement. The other patient, diagnosed 8 years after onset of symptoms, was treated conservatively. The availability of MRI makes early recognition of cervical cord compression possible, allowing effective surgical intervention in this special group of patients.