Fig. 1
A 61-year-old male patient presented with limb numbness and intermittent claudication for 14 months and underwent open-door laminoplasty with Z-type titanium plate fixation. a Preoperative X-ray showing cervical degeneration and osteophytes formed at the anterior and posterior margins. b Sagittal MRI showing cervical disk herniations of the C3–6 segments. c Postoperative X-ray showing C3-6 open-door laminoplasty with titanium plate fixation. d Illustration of the titanium plate. The slot attached to the edge of the lamina or lateral mass (red arrow). e Postoperative CT showing the titanium plate fixed on the lamina edge; the opening angle was 42.5° and the opening width d was 16.8 mm. f Postoperative MRI showing that the spinal canal was enlarged with appropriate decompression and that the spinal cord drift distance was 2.4 mm