• Conventional catheter angiography is recommended for the diagnosis of VAI in selected patients after blunt cervical trauma, particularly if concurrent endovascular therapy is a potential consideration, and can be undertaken in circumstances in which CTA is not available. • Magnetic resonance imaging is recommended for the diagnosis of VAI after blunt cervical trauma in patients with a complet...

A 66-year-old man with a history of ankylosing spondylitis presented to the emergency department as a trauma activation after a fall backward onto his sacrum from the bottom rung of a ladder. He initially complained of neck pain. On physical examination, midline lower cervical spine tenderness to palpation was present, but careful neurologic examination revealed no deficits. A CT scan of the ce...

AIM This audit aims to gauge the safety and efficacy of iso-oncotic water-soluble contrast media as the sole imaging evaluation of the distal pharynx and cervical oesophagus after penetrating cervical trauma. METHODS A retrospective audit was performed over a 4-year period of all patients with penetrating cervical trauma to zones 1 and 2 of the neck who were subjected to imaging evaluation as...

VeStibUIOCOchlear symptoms after cervical trauma remain a matter of controversy. This controversy is due to the difficulty in interpreting vague symptoms, the lack of objective findings, and the unpredictable time span between trauma and onset of symptoms. Cervicogenic vestibulocochlear symptoms include vertigo, hearing loss, and tinnitus and frequently are used in the same context, suggesting ...

The importance of visualizing the entire cervical spine on radiological examination in patients with cervical trauma is well known. A review of the cervical films of 98 patients attending an accident and emergency (A&E) department was undertaken in order to assess the adequacy of imaging. It was found that 33.7% of the films were not sufficient to exclude fracture or dislocation of the cervical...

Estimates of the incidence of injury to the cervical spine among patients suffering blunt trauma to the head vary widely, and have been reported to be as high as 20%. Since strict observation of cervical spine precautions may delay attempts to gain control of the airway in a patient with an intracranial injury, the risk involved needs more exact definition. In an attempt to quantify this risk, ...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effectiveness of arm traction for cervical spine imaging in trauma patients and devise a scheme to predict the probability of visualising the C7/T1 level in trauma patients. METHODS 98 trauma patients were studied. Each vertebral body was divided into three equal horizontal zones, the disc space between vertebral bodies being equivalent to one zone. The fifth cervica...

Cervical spine injuries are extremely common and range from relatively minor injuries, such as cervical muscle strains, to severe, life-threatening cervical fractures with spinal cord injuries. Although cervical spine injuries are most common in athletes who participate in contact and collision sports, such as American football and rugby, they also have been reported in athletes who participate...

UNLABELLED Distracting painful injuries (DPIs) may mask symptoms of spinal injury in blunt trauma victims and form an important element in a decision instrument used to identify individuals who require cervical spine radiography. OBJECTIVE To identify the types and frequencies of injuries that actually act as DPIs among blunt trauma patients undergoing cervical spinal radiography. METHODS T...

Blunt cerebrovascular injuries (i.e. involvement of carotid and vertebral arteries) are increasingly being recognized in setting of cervical spine trauma/fractures and are associated with high incidence of stroke/morbidity and mortality. The incidence of vertebral artery injuries (VAI) is more common than previously thought and regular screening is seldom performed. However there exists no scre...