Visual loss after spine surgery. Imaging findings

Postoperative visual loss is a rare but disastrous complication that can be observed after spinal surgery. We report the case of a 39-year-old woman involved in a traffic accident that caused trauma to the cervical spine causing right hemiplegia, who underwent a prolonged spinal operation in the prone position and complained of monocular blindness 1 day postoperatively. The ophthalmologic examination showed no involvement of the ocular globe. The orbitocerebral MRI showed definite diagnostic arguments for orbital vascular injury. The symptoms did not completely disappear after 1 year of treatment. We consider the potential etiological factors contributing to this unilateral postoperative visual loss and suggest strategies to reduce the incidence of this complication in spinal surgery.