Clinical evaluation of three surgical methods for treatment of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy of dogs.

Sixty-four dogs with caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy (CCSM) caused by chronic degenerative disc disease were treated with ventral decompression (n = 20), linear traction and interbody screw stabilization (n = 7), or linear traction and plastic plate stabilization (n = 37). Interbody screw stabilization was ineffective in treating CCSM because of an unacceptably high rate of implant failures. Ventral decompression or linear traction and plastic plate stabilization were effective in the treatment of most patients with mild to moderate neurologic deficits (neck pain, paraparesis, or ambulatory tetraparesis). Although these techniques were also used successfully in some patients with severe neurologic deficits (weakly ambulatory tetraparesis or nonambulatory tetraparesis), variable success rates and prolonged postoperative recovery periods were noted.