STUDY DESIGN Observational, case series. PURPOSE To determine the sensitivity and specificity of clinical judgment as compared to the use of X-ray images in detecting cervical spine injuries in trauma patients presenting in the emergency department of Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE Cross-table cervical spine views are important in patients with signs and sympt...

PURPOSE To investigate the cost-effectiveness of computed tomography (CT) relative to radiography for cervical spine screening in trauma patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS A decision analysis model was constructed to compare the incremental cost-effectiveness of radiography and CT as primary cervical spine screening modalities in trauma patients. Analyses were performed from a societal perspecti...

STUDY DESIGN A bench-top trauma sled was used to apply four intensities of whiplash trauma to human cadaveric cervical spine specimens and to measure resulting intervertebral rotations using high-speed cinematography. OBJECTIVES To determine the cervical spine levels most prone to injury from whiplash trauma and to hypothesize a mechanism for such injury. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Whiplash...

STUDY DESIGN The classification system was derived through a literature review and expert opinion of experienced spine surgeons. In addition, a multicenter reliability and validity study of the system was conducted on a collection of trauma cases. OBJECTIVES To define a novel classification system for subaxial cervical spine trauma that conveys information about injury pattern, severity, trea...

AIM Identifying cervical spine injuries in confused or comatose patients with multiple injuries provides a diagnostic challenge. Our aim was to investigate the protocols which are used for the clearance of the cervical spine in these patients in English hospitals. PATIENTS AND METHODS All hospitals in England with an Emergency Department were asked about the protocols which they use for asses...

BACKGROUND Vertebral artery injury (VAI) after blunt cervical trauma occurs more frequently than historically believed. The symptoms due to vertebral artery (VA) occlusion usually manifest within the first 24 hours after trauma. Misdiagnosed VAI or delay in diagnosis has been reported to cause acute deterioration of previously conscious and neurologically intact patients. CASE PRESENTATION A ...

The clinical manifestations of vertebral artery (VA) injury (VAI) after cervical trauma range from asymptomatic to fatal cerebral infarction. Thrombotic occlusion and embolization to the distal arteries can cause cerebellar and brain stem infarction within days after trauma. We report a 64-year-old man who underwent arthrodesis surgery for C1 and C2 fractures. He had left VAI at the C2 transver...

In order to minimize the amount of ionizing radiation to which young trauma patients are subjected, a cervical spine clearance project was implemented. The aim was to increase the number of pediatric trauma patients clinically cleared and decrease the number of such patients undergoing cervical spine CT imaging when they met clinical clearance criteria. To accomplish the goals, a brief educatio...

We describe the case of a trauma patient who presented to our emergency department with signs and symptoms suggestive of cervical cord injury. The patient had an underlying ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament with multiple cervical disc prolapses from C3 to C7. The presence of these two factors increased the impact of the traumatic cervical cord injury. The patient underwent spi...

Hypopharyngeal perforation following minor trauma: a case report and literature review c A rare complication of non-penetrating blunt neck trauma, hypopharyngeal perforation is mainly reported in association with high velocity road traffic accidents. The proposed injury mechanism is neck hyperextension associated with airway closure due to cervical compression against the steering wheel. Low ve...