Purpose: To report a case of endovascular descending thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) repair in which delayed-onset paraplegia was reversed using cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) drainage.
Methods and results: A 74-year-old patient with a 6.0-cm TAA underwent endovascular stent-graft repair that involved overlapping placement of 3 Talent devices to cover the 31-cm-long defect. Twelve hours later, a neurological deficit occurred manifesting as left leg paralysis with paresis on the right. After urgent intrathecal catheter placement and drainage of cerebrospinal fluid for 48 hours, the neurological deficit resolved. The patient's clinical condition was normal and endoluminal exclusion of the TAA remained secure at 8-month follow-up.
Conclusions: This case demonstrates the potential therapeutic role for CSF drainage to reduce the complications of spinal cord injury after endovascular thoracic aneurysm repair.