OBJECTIVE: Despite endovascular repair of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms (TAAA) minimising the occurrence of spinal cord ischemia (SCI), postoperative SCI remained a frequent complication in our clinic. Therefore, beginning in 2015 we implemented an SCI prevention protocol, including no prophylactic cerebrospinal fluid drainage (CSFD), early reperfusion of iliac arteries, staging in selective cases, adjusting perioperative management, and ensuring circulatory stability. The objective of this study was to examine whether we were able to reduce the risk of postoperative SCI with our SCI prevention protocol. METHODS: A consecutive cohort of patients with TAAA with fenestrated or multi-branched endografts between 2010 and 2021 was divided into patients treated before 2015 (control group) and since 2015 (intervention group). For better comparison between both groups, we performed a propensity score matching using the optimal matching algorithm. The main outcome of the study was the occurrence of SCI, classified by severity and duration. Further outcomes were overall survival, 30-day mortality and CSF-associated complications. RESULTS: A total of 210 patients were included in the study, 105 in the control group and 105 in the intervention group. Control group compared to the intervention group, SCI developed in 25 (23.8%) vs 8 (7.6%) patients (p <
.001) and paraplegia occurred in 7 (6.7%) vs 2 (1.9%) patients, respectively. While most patients showed improvement in symptoms over time, permanent paraplegia occurred in 4 (3.8%) patients in the control group and 1 (1%) in the intervention group. No difference in 30-day overall survival was observed: control group 94.1% (95% CI 87.2-97.3%) and intervention group 96.2% (95% CI 90.2-98.6%). Of 57 patients who received CSF drainage, complications related to CSF drainage were reported in 6 patients (10.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of our SCI prevention protocol decreased the occurrence of SCI from 23.8% to 7.6% (p <
.001).