Posterior Fossa Decompression and superficial durotomy rather than complete durotomy and duraplasty in the management of Chiari 1

Abstract

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and reliability of posterior fossa decompression (PFD) and superficial durotomy in patients who underwent surgery for Chiari malformation type 1 (CM1). Materials and Methods: Our study included 54 patients with the diagnosis of CM1 who had surgery between January 2012 and June 2019. The patients were divided into two groups according to the surgical technique applied. Group 1 included 10 patients who underwent classic PFD and duraplasty, and Group 2 included 44 patients who underwent PFD and superficial durotomy surgery. Pre- and postoperative clinical signs and symptoms of each patient were recorded. Simultaneously, morphometric measurements were compared from computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MRI) images taken pre- and postoperatively. The data of the two groups were compared. Results: Of the 54 patients, 18 were male, and the mean age was 37.51 +/- 15.14. A statistically significant difference was found between the pre- and postoperative morphometric measurements of the subarachnoid distance, craniocervical angle, syringomyelia, and hydrocephalus at the cerebellum level in Group 2 patients who underwent PFD and superficial durotomy surgery (p < 0.05). When morphometric measurements and clinical signs and symptoms of both groups were compared, no significant difference was found (p > 0.05). There was a 92% improvement in clinical signs and symptoms postoperatively. The complications seen in Group 1 decreased to a minimum in Group 2. Conclusion: We believe that a minimally invasive surgical method is superior to avoid major complications. We also found PFD and superficial durotomy shorten the duration of the patient's hospital stay