18. Radiographic Technique For Injuries Of The Cervical Spine

Upper cervical spine injuries.

The unique anatomy of the upper cervical spine and the typical mechanisms of injury yield a predictable variety of injury patterns. Traumatic ligamentous injuries of the atlanto-occipital joint and transverse atlantal ligament are relatively uncommon, have a poor prognosis for healing, and often respond best to surgical stabilization. Bony injuries, including occipital condyle fractures, atlas ...

Soft-tissue injuries of the cervical spine.

Cervical sprain syndrome is usually the result of a hyperextension injury of the neck; symptoms include neck, intrascapular and arm pain, and headache. Associated complaints of the head, neck, and upper extremities are common. The mechanism and pathophysiology of this injury, and the occurrence of associated injuries are discussed. Patient evaluation, treatment, and prognosis are reviewed. A th...

Acceleration Injuries of the Cervical Spine.

Flexion-distraction injuries of the cervical spine.

A 29 year old woman during a non-professional, recreational, wrestling episode sustained a fall on her neck. She immediately experienced severe neck pain and felt weakness in her upper limbs. Her neurological examination in the emergency department, showed grade 3/5 motor strength in deltoid, biceps, brachioradialis, wrist and finger extensors bilaterally. The sensations were bilaterally decrea...

Cervical spine: postmortem assessment of accident injuries--comparison of radiographic, MR imaging, anatomic, and pathologic findings.

PURPOSE To assess the ability of postmortem radiography and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to depict occult cervical spine injuries as compared with anatomic and pathologic findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS The cervical spines of 10 adult accident victims underwent radiography and MR imaging, with T1-weighted, fast spin-echo T2-weighted, and four gradient-echo pulse sequences. The frozen speci...