Positioning patients for spine surgery: Avoiding uncommon position-related complications

Figure 7 Positioning the upper extremity in the lateral decubitus position. The shoulder abduction more than 90°, extreme elbow flexion and forearm pronation should be avoided in the nondependent arm. The nondependent and dependent elbows should be padded with foam. Placing foam or blankets under the dependent hand and foreram to avoid full extension may reduce the likelihood of median nerve injury. Head and neck should be in neutral forward position avoiding neck flexion extension, lateral rotation and lateral flexion.