Bilateral traumatic abducens palsy

1971 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard C. Schneider ◽  
Frank D. Johnson

✓ Two patients with bilateral abducens palsy are presented. A study of the associated injury to the cervical spine suggests that a severe blow to the head in an upward and posterior direction may produce contusion or avulsion of the abducens nerve by the rigid petrosphenoidal ligament under which it passes.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 164-170
Author(s):  
Sandeep B V ◽  
Rekha K R ◽  
Manpreet Singh Banga ◽  
Anantha Kishan ◽  
Vittal I Nayak ◽  
...  

Isolated bilateral sixth nerve palsies are rare, particularly in the setting of trauma. Most post-head injury cases with bilateral abducens palsy involve either basal skull fractures, particularly clival fractures. We present a case of bilateral abducens palsy after closed head injury in a young male who presented to the emergency department and a comprehensive literature review based on our clinical case. A Medline search for bilateral abducens palsy in closed head injury showed 89 results. Articles were excluded if crush head injury, non-traumatic bilateral abducens nerve palsy, associated vascular malformations were reported. After thorough search and filtering of those articles, fifty-one publications were found which reported and discussed about traumatic bilateral abducens palsy with closed head injury. In these 51 articles, a total of 139 cases were recorded. Several theories have been postulated to explain mechanisms of abducens nerve injury in trauma both in immediate and delayed settings. In our case, patient presented with immediate onset of bilateral abducens palsy. On imaging, clival fracture was seen in CT brain, which can be attributed for the nerve injury. Cases with retroclival extradural haematoma had higher chances of multiple cranial nerve injuries. Cases with multiple basal skull fracture involving petrous temporal bone fracture had higher chances of facial nerve injury. Along with bilateral involvement, the poorer outcome for recovery can be related with the severity of the adduction deficit. Our case showed no improvement in bilateral abduction during follow-up at 6 months. Clinical presentation of traumatic bilateral abducens nerve palsy is rare following closed head trauma and is usually associated with other injuries which are incompatible with life. It can be associated with other nerve injuries depending on basal skull fractures.


1998 ◽  
Vol 88 (3) ◽  
pp. 590-593 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hidekatsu Mizushima ◽  
Nobusuke Kobayashi ◽  
Yoshiharu Sawabe ◽  
Kazuo Hanakawa ◽  
Hiroyuki Jinbo ◽  
...  

✓ This 8-year-old boy presented with a rare case of epidural hematoma of the clivus and atlantoaxial dislocation caused by a hyperflexion injury sustained in a traffic accident. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging demonstrated an epidural hematoma in the posterior fossa that compressed the pons and medulla. On admission, the patient was confused and had bilateral abducens palsy. He was treated conservatively, and 6 months after admission, the epidural hematoma on the clivus had disappeared on MR imaging and the bilateral abducens palsy was cured. Only two such cases have been reported in the literature. In this report, the authors discuss the mechanism of hematoma formation in this region of the brain.


2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tateru Shiraishi

✓ The author describes a new technique for exposure of the cervical spine laminae in which the attachments of the semispinalis cervicis and multifidus muscles to the spinous processes are left untouched. It provides a conservative exposure through which a diverse range of posterior cervical surgeries can be performed. In contrast to conventional cervical approaches, none of the muscular attachments to the spinous processes is compromised. In this paper the author describes the technical details and discusses the applications of the procedure.


1984 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 200-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeff S. Compton ◽  
Nicholas W. C. Dorsch

✓ A case is reported of a 45-year-old man who developed quadriplegia following a trivial motor-vehicle accident. Investigation including computerized tomography (CT) of the cervical spine revealed a large calcified lesion displacing the spinal cord and nerve roots, which proved to be a tuberculoma. The case is unusual in regard to the age of the patient, the size, location, and nature of the lesion, the mode of presentation, and the delineation of the lesion by CT scanning.


2002 ◽  
Vol 97 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin L. Stevenson ◽  
Matthew Wetzel ◽  
Ian F. Pollack

✓ Delayed complications associated with sublaminar and interspinous wiring in the pediatric cervical spine are rare. The authors present a case of delayed complication in which a cervical fusion wire migrated into the cerebellum, causing subsequent cerebellar abscess 2 years after posterior cervical arthrodesis. A craniotomy was required to remove the wire and drain the abscess. Despite their history of safety and successful fusion, procedures involving sublaminar and interspinous wiring carry a risk of neurological injury secondary to wire migration. A thorough neuroimaging evaluation is required in patients who have undergone fusion and who have neurological complaints to detect late instrumentation-related sequelae.


1999 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Christensson ◽  
Hans Säveland ◽  
Stefan Zygmunt ◽  
Kjell Jonsson ◽  
Urban Rydholm

Object. The authors performed a prospective study to determine whether cervical laminectomy without simultaneous fusion results in spinal instability. Methods. Because of clinical and radiographic signs of cord compression, 15 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (including one with Bechterew's disease) and severe involvement of the cervical spine underwent decompressive laminectomy without fusion performed on one or more levels. Preoperative flexion—extension radiographs demonstrated dislocation but no signs of instability at the level of cord compression. Clinical and radiological reexamination were performed twice at a median of 15 months (6–24 months) and 43 months (28–72 months) postoperatively. One patient developed severe vertical translocation 28 months after undergoing a C-1 laminectomy, which led to sudden tetraplegia. She required reoperation in which posterior fusion was performed. No signs of additional instability at the operated levels were found in the remaining 14 patients. In three patients increased but stable dislocation was demonstrated. The results of clinical examination were favorable in most patients, with improvement of neurological symptoms and less pain. Conclusions. The authors conclude that decompressive laminectomy in which the facet joints are preserved can be performed in the rheumatoid arthritis-affected cervical spine in selected patients in whom signs of cord compression are demonstrated, but in whom radiographic and preoperative signs of instability are not. Performing a simultaneous fusion procedure does not always appear necessary. Vertical translocation must be detected early, and if present, a C-1 laminectomy should be followed by occipitocervical fusion.


1975 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian C. Bailey

✓ A case of cervical spine injury is presented in which complete displacement of one vertebral body was accompanied by only mild quadriparesis.


1992 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dale M. Schaefer ◽  
Adam E. Flanders ◽  
Jewell L. Osterholm ◽  
Bruce E. Northrup

✓ Fifty-seven patients with acute cervical spine injuries and associated major neurological deficit were examined within 2 weeks of injury by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. All patients had abnormal scans, indicating intramedullary lesions. This study was undertaken to determine if the early MR imaging pattern had a prognostic relationship to the eventual neurological outcome. Three different MR imaging patterns were observed in these patients: 21 patients had patterns characteristic of intramedullary hematoma (Group 1); 17 had intramedullary edema over more than one spinal segment, but no hemorrhage (Group 2); and 19 had restricted zones of intramedullary edema involving one spinal segment or less (Group 3). The neurological state was determined using standard motor index scores at admission and at follow-up examination. Characteristically, the patients in Group 1 had admission motor scores significantly lower than the other two groups. At follow-up examination, the median percent motor recovery was 9% for Group 1, 41% for Group 2, and 72% for Group 3. These studies suggest that the MR imaging pattern observed in the acutely injured human spinal cord has a prognostic significance in the final outcome of the motor system. It is only when an accurate prognosis can be given at the outset that useful treatment data might be collected for homogeneous injury groups, and accurately based long-term planning made for the best patient care.


2004 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim E. Adamson

✓ Since 1997, cervical endoscopic laminoforaminotomy (CELF) has been an effective and safe treatment option for unilateral cervical radiculopathy secondary to disc herniation or foraminal stenosis. The development of the surgical technique is reviewed and recent outcomes discussed. Its impact is addressed in relation to the patient and surgeon.


1987 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 286-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph M. Bicknell ◽  
Wolff M. Kirsch ◽  
Robert Seigel ◽  
William Orrison

✓ A 10-year-old boy had a sore throat, followed in 4 weeks by acute rheumatic fever and in 6 weeks by atlanto-axial dislocation. Reduction of the dislocation by means of a halo vest relieved his pain, but the cervical spine remained unstable after 3 months of immobilization and required an occiput-C1–2 fusion and rib graft to stabilize the atlanto-axial joint. This is the eighth reported case of atlanto-axial dislocation associated with acute rheumatic fever. The features of previous cases are summarized and the clinical aspects, mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment of atlanto-axial dislocation are reviewed.


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