Implant Migration After Anterior Cervical Spine Surgery

Implant migration after anterior cervical spine surgery is rare yet may occur many years after a patient's initial surgery without heralding symptoms. For this reason, surgeons should consider extended routine follow-up with radiographic imaging in these patients, for the first 5 years postoperatively since this complication transpired most frequently within this time frame. We recommend an individualized, patient-centered approach for radiographic follow-up to balance the risk of unnecessary radiation exposure in addition to practical risks like travel-related accidents. Extended routine follow-up may be most beneficial for patients with identified risk factors for late complications or early migration, that is, complex deformity or poor bone quality.