Abstract

ALCAZAR, L. et al. Forestier-Rotes-Querol's disease: Ossification of the anterior cervical longitudinal ligament as a cause of dysphagia. Neurocirugía [online]. 2008, vol.19, n.4, pp.350-355. ISSN 1130-1473.

Forestier's disease or diffuse idiophatic skeletal hyperostosis is a systemic reumathological abnormality of unknown etiology¹⁸. It produces calcificationossification of the anterior longitudinal ligament. The low dorsal region is the most affected in the raquis^18,28. These patients are tipically asymptomatic or with few symptoms (minimal joint pain, spinal pain, stiffness)²⁵. Dysphagia is the most common symptom when the disease affects the cervical spine; less frequent is dyspnea, both secondary to extrinsic compression of the esophagus and trachea. Neurological complaints are quite rare^18,21,25. In the 1970s Resnick described specific radiological criteria for the diagnosis of Forestier's disease that are still used today^18,28,29,30. It affects men more frequently than women (2:1); the peak occurrence is in patients in their 60s^18,25. We present two cases diagnosed by severe difficulty with deglution, a 84 years-old woman and a 54 years-old man; we operated on them for surgical decompression of the esophagus with resection of osteophytes C3-C4 and C5-C6 respectively through a conventional anterolateral neck approach. Relief of difficulty in swallowing was immediately ensued.

Keywords : Forestier's disease; Dysphagia; Diffuse idiophatic skeletal hyperostosis; Ossification of the anterior longitudinal ligament; Cervical osteophyte.

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