Abstract
In spine surgery, the occurrence of complications is inevitable. The complications may occur during the perioperative or postoperative periods and can be either specific to the type of surgery performed or be a general medical complication. The type and the frequency of medical complications are dependent on the following: patient risk factors, underlying pathology, the complexity of the procedure, the duration of the procedure, and the postoperative care. They include, but are not limited to the following: vascular, pulmonary, cardiac, gastrointestinal, and genitourinary complications. The surgeon and the medical team need to be aware of these potential complications and the time frame in which they occur to be able to diagnose and treat them in a timely fashion.