Surgical management options include extensive cervical laminectomy with or without an additional posterior arthrodesis, anterior decompression and arthrodesis, and posterior cervical laminoplasty. Treatment decisions can be made based on a grading systems devised by Hirabayashi et al., supplemented by the Nurick myelopathy classification system.

Most patients suffer from only mild symptoms. Symptoms typically last approximately 13 months. Of patients without myelopathy at initial presentation, only 29% of them will develop myelopathy within 30 years.