Paraplegia immediately following removal of a cerebrospinal fluid drainage catheter in a patient after thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm surgery

SPINAL cord ischemia resulting in postoperative paraplegia is a devastating complication after thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) surgery. Numerous strategies have been devised to protect the spinal cord from ischemia by maintaining spinal cord perfusion. Although controversial, one of the more popular clinical strategies, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) drainage, theoretically increases spinal cord blood flow by decreasing CSF pressure.(1) This article describes a case report of a patient with a thoracic epidural catheter in place who developed paraplegia immediately after removal of a lumbar CSF drainage catheter during the postoperative period after TAAA surgery, suggesting that the technique may have been of benefit to this patient.