Anterior cervical plating.

Although anterior cervical instrumentation was initially used in cervical trauma, because of obvious benefits, indications for its use have been expanded over time to degenerative cases as well as tumor and infection of the cervical spine. Along with a threefold increase in incidence of cervical fusion surgery, implant designs have evolved over the last three decades. Observation of graft subsidence and phenomenon of stress shielding led to the development of the new generation dynamic anterior cervical plating systems. Anterior cervical plating does not conclusively improve clinical outcome of the patients, but certainly enhances the efficacy of autograft and allograft fusion and lessens the rate of pseudoarthrosis and kyphosis after multilevel discectomy and fusions. A review of biomechanics, surgical technique, indications, complications and results of various anterior cervical plating systems is presented here to enable clinicians to select the appropriate construct design.