Sagittal fractures of III-VI cervical vertebral bodies: causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Sagittal, or vertical, fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies are a special, rarely occurring form of compression fractured fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies.
They occur only at the level of III - VI cervical vertebrae, that is, in the extent to which the bodies of the cervical vertebrae can occupy a vertical position, be in a position intermediate between kyphosis and lordosis.
[What causes sagittal fractures of III-VI cervical vertebral bodies?
There are sagittal fractures when exposed to violence but vertical, passing through the body of the vertebrae. It is not clear why, with the same mechanism of violence, typical compression fracture fractures are more common, and sagittal fractures are much less frequent.
Morlaechi and Garosi (1964) attempted to elucidate in the experiment the cause of the appearance of sagittal fractures on the acrylic model of cervical vertebrae in polarized light when axial violence was applied to them. The authors noted that it was rather difficult in the experiment to reproduce a strictly vertical load on the model of the cervical vertebrae, but when this succeeded, a sagittal fracture occurred.
According to Nielsen (1965), only 25 observations of sagittal fractures of the cervical vertebrae have been described in the literature. These observations were supplemented by the author with his own individual case.
Sagittal fractures of cervical vertebral bodies are usually found in adults, which some authors (Morlaechi, Garosi, 1964) explain by age-related degenerative changes in the spine, leading to the elimination of physiological cervical lordosis. The cause of the sagittal fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies is the impossibility on the part of the "shrunken" intervertebral disc to exhibit a hydrostatic effect that causes a comminuted fracture fracture.
Symptoms of sagittal fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies
Symptoms of sagittal fractures of cervical vertebral bodies are rather poor and are often limited to minor local pain. More often these fractures are detected radiologically. In 3 out of 4 patients who were observed Morlaechi and Garosi, sagittal fractures were identified as a random radiographic finding. Decisive in diagnosis is the posterior spondylogram, which reveals a fracture line that runs vertically across the entire thickness of the vertebral body, dividing the vertebral body into two halves without decreasing its height.
Treatment of sagittal fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies
Treatment of sagittal fractures of the cervical vertebral bodies consists in immobilization with a plaster bandage. If it is not possible to apply a bandage immediately, skeletal traction is first applied.