In December 2014, Suwa announced he was suffering from ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament ( OPLL ) and would have to pull out of his scheduled return to the ring.
12.
The ligament is thick and slightly more narrow over the vertebral bodies and thinner but slightly wider over the intervertebral discs which is much less pronounced than that seen in the posterior longitudinal ligament.
13.
It is strengthened in the middle line by a rounded cord, which connects the tubercle on the anterior arch of the atlas to the body of the axis, and is a continuation upward of the anterior longitudinal ligament.
