Techniques in cervical laminoplasty

Background context: Laminoplasty provides an alternative to anterior procedures or multilevel laminectomy for patients with multilevel spinal stenosis and myeloradiculopathy. Purpose: To review the techniques, results and complications of cervical laminoplasty. Study design: The three basic variations of laminoplasty are the single open door, the French door or midline and the Z-plasty technique. These techniques and their outcome are discussed in detail. Results: The recovery rate after laminoplasty ranges from 50% to 70% without statistical superiority of any one technique over another. Closure of opened laminae, temporary nerve root deficit, decreased neck range of motion and axial pain are the main complications of laminoplasty. Conclusions: Good to excellent long-term clinical results can be expected for the appropriately selected patients regardless of the specific technique used.