Fractures of the odontoid process are common, accounting for 10% to 20% of all cervical spine fractures. Odontoid process fractures are classified into three types depending on the location of the fracture line. Various treatment options are available for each of these fracture types and include application of a cervical orthosis, direct anterior screw fixation, and posterior cervical fusion. I...

The preferred treatment of a type II odontoid fracture is anterior odontoid screw fixation to preserve the cervical spine range of movement. This case report describes an unusual complication of guidewire breakage during anterior odontoid cannulated screw fixation for a 52-year-old patient who presented with a type II odontoid fracture after a motor vehicle accident. The distal segment of the g...

BACKGROUND The anteriorly displaced type II odontoid fracture is treated either conservatively by halo-vest brace immobilization or surgically by posterior atlantoaxial fusion. Anterior odontoid screw fixation is not advised for this pattern of odontoid fracture because of the difficult trajectory for screw insertion despite its advantage of salvaging the upper cervical spine rotatory range of ...

Address for Correspondence: Dr Prathap Kumar J, Assistant professor, Department of Anatomy, MSRIT Post, M S Ramaiah Medical College, Bangalore, Karnataka, India560054. Phone No’s: +91 9035433303, +91 9035648318. E-Mail: [email protected] Access this Article online Quick Response code Web site: *1,2,3Assistant Professor, 4Associate Professor. Department of Anatomy, M.S.Ramaiah Medical Co...

The first two cervical vertebrae, C1 and C2, are also known as the atlas and axis, respectively. The odontoid process of C2, also known as the dens, is the superiorly projecting bony prominence from the body of C2 that sits within the anterior portion of the ring of C2. C1 rotates around this. Anterior odontoid screw fixation involves the reduction and stabilization of an odontoid fracture usin...

PURPOSES To measure the diameter of the odontoid process in a Malaysian population using computed tomographic (CT) scan and determine the feasibility of treating type-II odontoid fractures using 2 cortical screws. METHODS CT images of the odontoid process of 85 patients aged 18 to 80 years were analysed; 69 (81%) were male (mean age, 44 years) and 16 (19%) were female (mean age, 48 years). Bo...

Study Design Case report. Objective Odontoid process fractures represent an uncommon injury in small children, with their optimal management remaining unclear. We present a case of conservatively managed displaced type 2 odontoid process fracture in a small child. Methods We analyzed clinical and radiographic outcomes of a restrained 2-year-old girl involved in a motor vehicle accident who sust...

Type III (low) odontoid fractures may be subtle on initial plain film radiographic examination. We describe a sign on the routine open-mouth view, the laterally tilted dens, which has not been previously stressed in the radiologic literature, and is an important diagnostic sign of type III fractures of the odontoid process of the axis. In a series of 82 nontraumatized patients, no odontoid angl...

AIMS We wished to investigate the role of the cervical ligaments in maintaining atlantoaxial stability after fracture of the odontoid process. METHODS We dissected eight fresh-frozen cadaveric cervical spines to prepare the C1 and C2 vertebrae for biomechanical analysis. The C1 and C2 blocks were mounted and biomechanical analysis was performed to test the stability of the C1-C2 complex after...