Although epidural fibrosis after laminectomy is considered to be the cause of pain in a number of patients, the exact relationship of postoperative scar tissue and symptoms remains controversial. However it is generally accepted that epidural fibrosis after surgical decompression of neural tissue has to be avoided. To diminish the likelihooa that such a scar will form, fat grafts have been used to create an interpositional membrane. Compression of a nerve after the use of a fat graft is rare; postoperative cauda equina syndrome, resulting from compression by a grafted fat. We report the case of a patient who had this complication.