Cervical Spine Flashcards
What can spondylosis lead to?
Disc degeneration, increased load and accelerated OA of the facet joints
What will patients with spondylosis of the C spine complain of?
Slow onset stiffness and pain in the neck which can radiate to the shoulders and occiput
What are the mainstay of treatment for spondylosis?
Physiotherapy and analgesics
Osteophyte compression of cervical nerve roots can cause what?
Radiculopathy in the upper limb myotomes and dermatomes
If compression of cervical nerve roots is resistant to treatment, what can be done?
Decompression
What are two causes of cervical nerve root compression?
Osteophytes from OA, or a prolapsed disc
In a nerve root compression, what will patients complain of?
A shooting, neuralgic pain in a dermatomal distribution and possible weakness and loss of reflexes in a myotomal distribution
What will aid diagnosis of the level affected by a disc prolapse?
Clinical findings and MRI
What should you always be aware of when doing an MRI for disc prolapse?
There are often false positives, always consider the clinical findings
As with lumbar spine, what surgery may be used in severe cases of disc prolapse?
Discectomy
What two conditions predispose to asymptomatic cervical spine instability?
Down’s syndrome and RA
Where is the cervical spine instability caused by RA or Down’s?
C1/C2
What is the risk of C1/C2 instability?
Risk of subluxation and compression of the spinal cord which can be fatal
How do you screen for cervical instability?
Flexion-extension x-rays
What may be prohibited in children with Down’s with minor cervical instability?
Contant or high impact sports
