ParticipantsShekhar Khanpara, MD, Houston, TX (Abstract Co-Author) Nothing to Disclose
Daniel Ruiz-Pardo, MS, Bogota, Colombia (Abstract Co-Author) Nothing to Disclose
Susanna C. Spence, MD, Houston, TX (Abstract Co-Author) Nothing to Disclose
O. C. West, MD, Houston, TX (Abstract Co-Author) Royalties, Reed Elsevier
Roy Riascos, MD, Houston, TX (Presenter) Nothing to Disclose
Though spinal fractures constitute a minority of all trauma, the financial burden imposed is very significant especially cervical spine trauma. The pattern of cervical spine injuries in the setting of trauma in general population is unknown at the moment in United States with very few papers addressing the issue. We reviewed entire spectrum of cervical spine injuries and demonstrated correlation between various demographics, clinical presentation with radiological appearance of the injury.
METHOD AND MATERIALSWe performed retrospective analysis of 13,500 patients who underwent imaging for cervical spine trauma at a level I trauma center. Out of this database we selected 934 patients who had a positive CT scan. Each patient was then analyzed by reviewing the medical records and correlation was sought between demographic, clinical and imaging features.
RESULTSIn our study, the peak incidence of cervical spine trauma was in the age group of 21-30 years followed by 31-40 years with a male:female ratio of 2.1. Major cause of injury in the study population was motor vehicle accidents (66.1%), followed by fall from height of less than 8 feet (12.2%). For fractures of vertebral bodies, we identified 440 injury levels, with C1 and C2 being the most frequent fractured as compared to the subaxial spine. Incidence of C2 fractures (40.9%) was higher as compared to C1 (23.2%). Body and lateral mass fracture incidence was marginally higher as compared to odontoid fractures. C7 (11.3%) was the most fractured vertebral body in the subaxial spine followed by C6 (8%) and C5. Highest number of vertebral body fractures were due to compression injury. 924 injury levels were identified for vertebral body process with transverse process fractures (38.6%) being the most common.
CONCLUSIONSpinal trauma is on the rise and it helps to understand the frequency and pattern of injuries in cervical spine to guide us for better management of these patients.
CLINICAL RELEVANCE/APPLICATIONTo understand the distribution and pattern of injuries in cervical spine on a plain CT in the setting of trauma to improve delivery of healthcare.