scholarly journals Successful surgical repair and recovery in a 2-week-old infant after birth-related cervical fracture dislocation

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-20
Author(s):  
Sara Saleh ◽  
Kyle I. Swanson ◽  
Taryn Bragg

Cervical spine injuries are the most common spine injuries in the pediatric population. The authors present the youngest known patient who underwent cervical spine fusion to repair birth trauma–induced cervical fracture dislocation, resulting in spondyloptosis and spinal cord injury. A 2-week-old boy was found to have spondyloptosis and spinal cord injury after concerns arose from reduced movement of the extremities. The patient’s birth was complicated by undiagnosed abdominal dystocia, which led to cervical distraction injury. At 15 days of age, the boy underwent successful C-5 corpectomy, with anterior C4–6 and posterior C2–7 arthrodesis, using an autologous rib graft for a C-5 fracture dislocation. MRI performed 2 weeks postoperatively revealed significant improvement in the alignment of the spinal canal. The patient was discharged from the hospital in a custom Minerva brace and underwent close follow-up in addition to occupational therapy and physical therapy. At the latest follow-up 4.5 years later, the patient was able to walk and ride a tricycle by himself. The authors describe the patient’s surgery and the challenges faced in achieving successful repair and cervical spine stabilization in such a young patient. The authors suggest that significant neurological recovery after spinal cord injury in infants is possible with appropriate, timely, and interdisciplinary management.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 92-97
Author(s):  
Sushant H Bhadane ◽  

Background: The consequences of cervical spine injuries range from simple neck pain, to quadriplegia, or even death. MR imaging has become part of the diagnostic and prognostic tools for spinal cord injury. Aim: To prospectively evaluate cervical spine injuries by MR imaging and to find out association of MR imaging findings with degree of neurological deficit. Material and Methods: Descriptive longitudinal hospital based study was conducted on 30 patients with known or suspected cervical spine trauma who presented to the emergency department. Results: Mean age of the cases was about 42 years, with female to male ratio of 1:6.5. C6-C7 spinal level was most commonly involved. Proportions complete spinal cord injury (CSCI), incomplete spinal cord injury (ISCI) and neurologically normal (NN) were 23.33%, 60% and 16.67% respectively. Out of 12 MRI findings, cord haemorrhage, contusion, posterior element fracture, disc injury, prevertebral hematoma, subluxation and soft tissue injury was statistically associated with degree of neurological deficit. Cord contusion, cord haemorrhage and posterior element fracture were potential predictors of neurological status at admission. Cord contusion, cord haemorrhage and subluxation were potential predictors at 3 months. Conclusion: MRI proved a pivotal role in the diagnosis of SCIs, deciding prompt management and predicting neurological deficit and prognosis of neurological recovery. So, MRI is an excellent diagnostic modality for the evaluation of spinal trauma and predicting the degree of neurological deficit and recovery.


Neurosurgery ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 491-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian E. Bailes ◽  
Mark N. Hadley ◽  
Matthew R. Quigley ◽  
Volker K.H. Sonntag ◽  
Leonard J. Cerullo

Abstract Injuries to the cervical spine among athletes present inherent difficulties, especially in advising for return to contact sports. Experience with the acute care of 63 patients who sustained cervical spine injuries while participating in organized sporting events is analyzed. Forty-five patients had permanent injury to the vertebral colum n and/or spinal cord, while 18 suffered only transient spinal cord symptoms. Football mishaps accounted for the highest number of injuries, followed by wrestling and gymnastics. Twelve patients had complete spinal cord injury, 14 patients had incomplete spinal cord injury, and 19 patients had injury to the vertebral column alone. The majority of the spinal cord lesions occurred at the C4 and C5 levels, while bony injuries of C4 through C6 predominated. Twenty-five patients required surgical stabilization, and 20 were treated with orthosis only. There was no instance of associated systemic injuries, and hospital complications were few. The mean time of hospitalization was 19.1 days for injured patients and 3.0 days for patients with transient symptoms. A classification was developed to assist in the management of these patients: Type 1 athletic injuries to the cervical spine are those that cause neurological injury; patients with Type 1 injuries are not allowed to participate in contact, competitive sporting events. Type 2 injuries consist of transient neurological deficits without radiological evidence of abnormalities; these injuries usually do not prohibit further participation in contact sports unless they become repetitive. Type 3 injuries are those that cause radiological abnormality alone; these represent a heterogeneous group. The athlete with fractures involving a significant structural portion of the vertebral column, ligament instability, spinal cord contusion, or congenital cervical stenosis, is advised not to return to contact sports. Other radiological abnormalities, such as compromise of the ligaments, congenital fusion, degenerative disease, and herniated cervical disc require individual consideration. The rationale for treatment and advising for participation in sports are discussed. We believe that this classification of sports injuries offers clinicians a framework within which to make rational judgments and recommendations in the management of athletes with cervical spine injuries.


Neurosurgery ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 1038-1040 ◽  
Author(s):  
James E. Wilberger ◽  
Adnan Abla ◽  
Joseph C. Maroon

Abstract The burning hands syndrome of spinal cord injury was first described in 1977. The syndrome is characterized by burning dysesthesias and paresthesias in the hands and may be associated with either cervical fracture/dislocation or no detectable cervical spine abnormalities. A case of burning hands syndrome without cervical spine injury is presented in which somatosensory evoked potentials and magnetic resonance imaging were used to delineate the pathophysiology of this syndrome.


2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 772-779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Andreas Lehre ◽  
Lars Magnus Eriksen ◽  
Abenezer Tirsit ◽  
Segni Bekele ◽  
Saba Petros ◽  
...  

OBJECT The objective of this study was to investigate epidemiology and outcome after surgical treatment for spinal injuries in Ethiopia. METHODS Medical records of patients who underwent surgery for spine injuries at Myungsung Christian Medical Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, between January 2008 and September 2012 were reviewed retrospectively. Assessment of outcome and complications was determined from patient consultations and phone interviews. RESULTS A total of 146 patients were included (129 males, 17 females). Their mean age was 31.7 years (range 15–81 years). The leading cause of injury was motor vehicle accidents (54.1%), and this was followed by falls (26.7%). The most common injury sites were lumbar (41.1%) and cervical (34.2%) regions of the spine. In 21.2% of patients, no neurological deficit was present before surgery, 46.6% had incomplete spinal cord injury (American Spinal Injury Association [ASIA] Impairment Scale [AIS] Grade B-D), and 32.2% had complete spinal cord injury (AIS Grade A). Follow-up was hampered by suboptimal infrastructure, but information regarding outcome was successfully obtained for 110 patients (75.3%). At follow-up (mean 22.9 months; range 2–57 months), 25 patients (17.1%) were confirmed dead and 85 patients (58.2%) were alive; 49 patients (33.6%) underwent physical examination. At least 8 of the 47 patients (17.0%) with a complete injury and 29 of the 68 patients (42.6%) with an incomplete injury showed neurological improvement. The reported incidences of pressure wounds, recurrent urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and thromboembolic events were 22.5%, 13.5%, 5.6%, and 1.1%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Patients showed surprisingly good recovery considering the limited resources. Surgical treatment for spine injuries in Ethiopia is considered beneficial.


2018 ◽  
Vol 09 (03) ◽  
pp. 426-427 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siddharth Chavali ◽  
Shalendra Singh ◽  
Ashutosh Kaushal ◽  
Ankur Khandelwal ◽  
Hirok Roy

ABSTRACTWe report a 19-year-old male patient, an operated case of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion for traumatic C5–C6 vertebral injury, who developed persistent hypertension following dexmedetomidine infusion in the Intensive Care Unit to enable tolerance of noninvasive ventilation mask. This unusual side effect should be borne in mind when using this drug in patients with cervical spine injuries.


2010 ◽  
Vol 92 (5) ◽  
pp. 406-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Zhou ◽  
Jun Zou ◽  
Minfeng Gan ◽  
Ruofu Zhu ◽  
Huilin Yang

INTRODUCTION Usually, cervical pedicle screw fixation has been considered too risky for neurovascular structures. The purpose of this study was to investigate the method and efficacy of the cervical pedicle screw system for fracture-dislocation of the cervical spine because of its rigid fixation. PATIENTS AND METHODS A prospective study was conducted involving 48 patients with cervical spine fracture-dislocation who underwent cervical pedicle screw fixation surgery between January 2003 and January 2007. All patients had various degrees of cord injury, and they were classified according to the American Spinal Cord Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale: 18 cases were grade A, 15 grade B, 10 grade C, and 5 grade D. RESULTS Six months after the operation, all patients had achieved solid bony fusion and stable fixation of the related segments. Thirty patients with incomplete spinal cord injury improved their ASIA Impairment Scale classification by 1 to 2 grades after the operation. Eighteen patients with complete spinal cord injury had no improvement in neural function. However, nerve root symptoms such as pain and numbness were alleviated to some extent. CONCLUSIONS The cervical pedicle screw system is an effective and reliable method for the restoration of cervical stability. Sufficient pre-operative imaging studies of the pedicles and strict screw insertion technique should be emphasised.


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