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Management of Dural Tears in Spinal Surgery

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Spine Surgery Basics

Abstract

Dural tears are one of the most common complications of spinal surgery. Deleterious consequences of dural leaks include dural-cutaneous fistulas that can lead to meningitis, arachnoiditis or epidural abscess, impaired wound healing, wound infection, pseudomeningocele formation, nerve root entrapment, and headache. Primary watertight closure is the most important aspect of treatment. If a dural tear is encountered during spine surgery, a direct suture repair is recommended. If the repair is tenuous or if suture repair is not possible due to location or tissue quality, use of adjuncts should be considered.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Mount Sinai Hospital, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, 5 East 98th Street, 9th Floor, 1188, New York, NY, 10029, USA

    Sheeraz A. Qureshi M.D., MBA & Steven M. Koehler M.D.

  2. SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Michael C. Gerling M.D. (Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Director of Spine Service)

  3. Lutheran Medical Center, 150 55th Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11220, USA

    Michael C. Gerling M.D. (Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Director of Spine Service)

Authors
  1. Sheeraz A. Qureshi M.D., MBA
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  2. Steven M. Koehler M.D.
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  3. Michael C. Gerling M.D.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sheeraz A. Qureshi M.D., MBA .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Colorado, Denver Dept. Orthopaedics, Aurora, Colorado, USA

    Vikas V. Patel

  2. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Neurosciences Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

    Alpesh Patel

  3. Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

    James S. Harrop

  4. University of Colorado, Denver Dept. Orthopaedics, Aurora, Colorado, USA

    Evalina Burger

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Qureshi, S.A., Koehler, S.M., Gerling, M.C. (2014). Management of Dural Tears in Spinal Surgery. In: Patel, V., Patel, A., Harrop, J., Burger, E. (eds) Spine Surgery Basics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34126-7_39

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34126-7_39

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-34125-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-34126-7

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