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Peripheral Procedures for Cervical Dystonia

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Textbook of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery

Abstract

Cervical dystonia is a type of focal dystonia in which simultaneous and sustained contraction of both agonist and antagonist muscles are confined only to the neck [1]. The term “spasmodic torticollis” has been used historically for many years. However, because the symptom is not always “spasmodic” and the etiology of this condition is proven to be a type of dystonia due to dysfunction of central motor control, the term “cervical dystonia (CD) is more appropriate. Spasmodic torticollis is sometimes mistaken with other non-dystonic abnormal neck posture like congenital muscular contracture. In 1930, Dandy [2] scorned that medical students and even doctors were often misled into the belief that a psychogenic factor is an important, even the sole, cause of spasmodic torticollis. Cooper [3] wrote an autobiographical article “Victim is Always the Same” [4] indicating that many patients with dystonia were misdiagnosed as psychogenic origin despite the fact that surgical interventions to the motor part of the pallidum or thalamus alleviate the symptoms.

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  1. T. Taira
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Canadian Research Chair in Neuroscience (Tier 1), 399 Bathurst St. WW 4-447, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 2S8, Canada

    Andres M. Lozano (Professor of Surgery and RR Tasker Chair in Functional Neurosurgery University of Toronto Senior Scientist, Toronto Western Research Institute President, World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery) (Professor of Surgery and RR Tasker Chair in Functional Neurosurgery University of Toronto Senior Scientist, Toronto Western Research Institute President, World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery)

  2. Houston Stereotactic Concepts, Inc., 2260 West Holcombe Boulevard Suite 309, Houston, Texas, 77030, USA

    Philip L. Gildenberg

  3. University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst St. WW 4-447, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 2S8, Canada

    Ronald R. Tasker

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Taira, T. (2009). Peripheral Procedures for Cervical Dystonia. In: Lozano, A.M., Gildenberg, P.L., Tasker, R.R. (eds) Textbook of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69960-6_112

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-69960-6_112

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