Ossification of the ligamentum flavum and secondary spinal-cord compression were produced experimentally in mice by implanting bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) in the lumbar extradural space. The ligamentum flavum became hypertrophied and ossified, and protruded into the spinal canal. The thickness of the ossified ligament increased gradually with time, leading to compression and deformation of...

Cysts of the ligamentum flavum are uncommon causes of neurologic signs and symptoms and usually are seen in persons over 50 years of age. We report a case of an epidural cyst located in the ligamentum flavum, which contributed to spinal stenosis in a 30-year-old man. Radiologic features were similar to those of a synovial cyst, but synovium was not identified histologically. The imaging and pat...

We report a case of spinal stenosis with ossification of the thoracic ligamentum flavum in a 53-year-old man with achondroplasia. Neurological signs indicated flaccid paralysis below L1, and the patient was unable to walk. Ossification of the ligamentum flavum was observed at T4/5 and T9 to T12, compressing the thecal sac. Laminectomy of T9 to L1 was performed. At one-year follow-up, the patien...

BACKGROUND Cervical and high thoracic epidural anesthesia and analgesia have gained increasing importance in the treatment of painful conditions and as components of anesthetics for cardiac and breast surgery. In contrast to the hanging-drop technique, the loss-of-resistance technique is thought to rely on the penetration of the ligamentum flavum. However, the exact morphology of the ligamentum...

Myotonic dystrophy is the most common autosomal dominant myopathy in adults. Our patient, a 41 year-old female suffering from myotonic muscular dystrophy, developed upper thoracic myelopathy due to hypertrophy of the ligamentum flavum and the posterior longitudinal ligament. She had a typical hatchet face and ptosis with "head hanging forward" appearance caused by neck weakness. Motor weakness,...

PURPOSE The objective of this study was to determine the phenotypic characterization of ligamentum flavum cells from patients with ossification of the ligamentum flavum (OLF). MATERIALS AND METHODS Ligamentum flavum tissues were harvested from OLF and non-OLF patients during surgery. OLF and non-OLF cells were isolated from explant cultures. Cultured cells were analyzed using immunofluorescen...

Ossification of the ligamentum flavum (OLF) was discovered by Polgar and further described by Yamaguchi and Isuruni [1]. Among the thoracic myelopathies, its incidence is less than that of ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) and higher than that of herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) [1]. It is mostly prevalent in Japan and other East Asian countries such as Korea and China ...

The clinical, radiologic, and histologic features of ossification and calcification of the ligamentum flavum were studied in 18 patients. Ossification (15 patients) usually occurred in the lower thoracic spine in men of various ages, while calcification (three patients) was found exclusively in the cervical region of older women. Histologic examinations of ossification showed mature lamellar bo...

Symptomatic thoracic ossification of the ligamentum flavum is rare, and a modality for its treatment has not yet been fully established; most reported patients complained of myelopathy. Herein, the authors will report on an extremely rare presentation of thoracic ossification of the ligamentum flavum, along with clinical outcomes. The patient complained of chest discomfort and myelopathy sympto...

INTRODUCTION Ossification of the ligamentum flavum (OLF) of the spine is associated with serious neurologic compromise, but the pathomechanism of this process remains unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate the pathomechanism of the ossification process, including the roles of various transcriptional factors in the ossification of human thoracic ligamentum flavum. METHODS Sect...