Neurofibromatosis Type 1 with Severe Dystrophic Kyphosis: Surgical Treatment and Prognostic Analysis of 27 Patients

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to explore the surgical treatment and prognosis of 27 cases of neurofibromatosis type 1 with severe dystrophic kyphosis. METHODS: We performed surgical treatment for scoliosis and kyphosis caused by dystrophic curves at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing, China from December 2015 to December 2017. The study included 21 patients with moderate to severe kyphosis, 12 males and 9 females, with an average age of 14.95 ± 6.05 years. All patients had kyphosis angles greater than 70° and had more than four skeletal developmental defects. A total of 6 patients with severe kyphosis, 2 males and 4 females, with an average age of 12.5 years, had more than five skeletal developmental defects with a kyphosis angle greater than 90° or a lumbar kyphosis angle greater than 40°. According to the patient's own situation, we adopted a low‐grade surgery scheme (grades 1 or 2) or a high‐grade surgery scheme (grades 3–6). The low‐grade surgery was mainly lower articular surface resection or pontodestomy, and the high‐grade surgery was mainly apical vertebral body or upper discectomy. All patients were followed up to determine their prognosis. RESULTS: Statistical analysis showed that there was a significant difference in preoperative and postoperative scores between the two groups (P < 0.05), and scoliosis correction showed that surgical treatment had a significant effect on scoliosis kyphosis. The mean follow‐up time was 66.7 months. Follow‐up results showed that 50% of complications after internal fixation were related to high‐level surgery. Complications included displacement of the titanium cage, removal of the lamina hook, formation of pseudoarthrosis, and internal fixation failure (with a rate of 7.7%–14.3%). In contrast, there were no associated symptoms for low‐grade surgery. In addition, the results showed that gender, age, extent of resection, height, and body mass index had no significant effect on preoperative, postoperative, and prognostic indicators of patients (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Early identification of dysplastic scoliosis‐related deformities plays an important role in surgical planning and prognosis, and low‐level surgical procedures are more favorable for patients' prognosis.