A 67-yr-old man had undergone an iliofemoral arterial stenting at a hospital for peripheral vascular disease. Eight days later, he presented with cauda equina syndrome comprising back pain, right L5 radiculopathy, perianal numbness, urinary retention, and constipation.

His scans demonstrated stents deployed into the venous system, traversing the spinal canal and the right L5-S1 neural foramen, resulting in severe spinal canal stenosis, right L5-S1 foraminal stenosis, and moderate left S1-S2 foraminal stenosis.⁸

What treatment strategy would you employ for this patient?

References

1. Whiting B, Mulholland C, Daniels L, Kakarla U, Theodore N, Snyder L. Misplacement of Stent Into Epidural Venous Plexus With Resultant Cauda Equina Syndrome and Open Surgical Treatment: A Case Report. Operative Neurosurgery. 2017. doi:10.1093/ons/opx249.