BACKGROUND Cervical collars are applied to millions of trauma victims with the intent of protecting against secondary spine injuries. Adverse clinical outcomes during the management of trauma patients led to the hypothesis that extrication collars may be harmful in some cases. The literature provides indirect support for this observation. The purpose of this study was to directly evaluate cervi...

[Purpose] To present a case of the non-surgical improvement in cervical kyphosis in a patient with history of cervical spine trauma and advanced osteoarthritis. [Subject and Methods] A 38 year old male presented with a chief complaint of chronic neck pain that was not substantially relieved by recent previous traditional physiotherapy and chiropractic manipulation. The cervical radiograph demon...

BACKGROUND Correct diagnosis of cervical spine injuries is still a common problem in traumatology. The incidence of delayed diagnosis ranges from 5 to 20%. The aim of this study was to analyze the frequency and reasons for delayed or missed diagnosis at this Level I trauma unit and to provide recommendations for optimal examination of patients with suspected cervical spine injuries. METHODS A...

Prompt and accurate diagnosis of cervical spine injury is important to prevent the catastrophic results that can be caused by undetected lesions. Delayed or missed diagnosis of cervical spine injury occurs with an incidence of 5 to 20% according to previous studies. In this study, we report four cases of cervical instability without initial radiologic evidence. These cases demonstrate that dyna...

PURPOSE A second opinion is a valuable resource in confirming proper medical diagnosis and treatment. This study evaluates the effectiveness of second-opinion radiology consultations to reassess the cervical spine computed tomography (CT) scans of the trauma patients referred to our hospital. METHODS Cervical spine CT scans of 301 consecutive adult trauma patients, who were referred to our ho...

Cervical spine trauma can potentially result in serious neurological injury such as tetraplegia or severe disability. Sub-axial cervical spine trauma (SCST), involving the spine levels of C3 to C7, accounts for the majority of cervical spine injuries, comprising about 65% of fractures and 75% of all dislocations that affects the spine1. In an attempt to improve clinical results and compare trea...

Compared to internal laryngeal trauma caused by endolaryngeal procedures, trauma to the larynx caused by external forces is relatively rare. It has been incidence of 1 in every 22,900 emergency room visits. Rapid evaluation and protection of the airway are critical. A history of a cervical trauma with signs of hoarseness, difficulty breathing and pain should always alert the emergency physician...

In this commentary we argue that fully alert, stable and co-operative trauma patients do not require the application of a semi-rigid cervical collar, even if they are suspected of underlying cervical spine fracture, unless their conscious level deteriorates or they find the short-term support of a cervical collar helpful. Despite the historical and cultural barriers that exist, the potential be...

PURPOSE To evaluate the appearance, morphology, and treatment of occipital condyle fractures (OCF). METHODS Cases were collected by a retrospective and prospective analysis of teaching files and case logs. Patients' charts, when available, were reviewed for age, sex, mode of injury, physical examination, Glascow Coma Scale score, and associated injuries. Plain films and CT images were reviewe...

STUDY OBJECTIVE We aim to determine the prevalence and factors associated with cervical discoligamentous injuries detected on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in acute, alert, neurologically intact trauma patients with computed tomography (CT) imaging negative for acute injury and persistent midline cervical spine tenderness. We present the cross-sectional analysis of baseline information colle...