Spondylodiscitis and Spinal Epidural Abscess After Transoral Robotic Surgery Radical Tonsillectomy

Abstract

Over the past 15 years, transoral robotic surgery (TORS) has emerged as a powerful, less invasive tool to treat oropharyngeal cancers. The goal of surgical treatment is de-escalation therapy to decrease treatment morbidity and improve quality of life outcomes while maintaining overall and disease-free survival. 1 This may involve treatment with definitive surgery and adjuvant radiation with avoidance of adjuvant chemotherapy, or even decreasing radiation dose. 2 While typical complications after TORS are wellreported in the literature, we describe a rare case of spondylodiscitis and spinal abscess treated with computed tomography (CT)-guided needle aspiration and antibiotics. This case report met criteria for University of California San Francisco Institutional Review Board exemption.