Abstract
Traumatic bilateral facet dislocation is rare but is associated with high-grade neurological injuries. The typical mechanism is isolated hyperflexion without rotation and results in disruption of the posterior ligamentous complex but can also be accompanied by anterior longitudinal ligament disruption with grossly unstable motion segment. Closed reduction with Gardner-Wells tongs and traction is the most common first-line intervention in the United States. MRI is not needed prior to closed reduction unless the patient cannot be examined because of altered mental status or when closed reduction has failed prior to either anterior or posterior surgical procedures. Potential options and precautions to treat and prevent complications associated with inadequate resuscitation and manual reduction are described.
References
Johnson MG, et al. The radiographic failure of single segment anterior cervical plate fixation in traumatic cervical flexion distraction injuries. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2004;29:2815–20.
Holdsworth F. Fractures, dislocations, and fracture-dislocations of the spine. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1970;52:1534–51.
Roaf R. A study of the mechanics of spinal injuries. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1960;42-B:810–23.
Harrington JF Jr, Park MC. Single level arthrodesis as treatment for midcervical fracture subluxation: a cohort study. J Spinal Disord Tech. 2007;20:42–8. doi:10.1097/01.bsd.0000211255.05626.b0.
Zhou F, Zou J, Gan M, Zhu R, Yang H. Management of fracture-dislocation of the lower cervical spine with the cervical pedicle screw system. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 2010;92:406–10. doi:10.1308/003588410X12628812459616. 10.1308/rcsann.2010.92.5.406.
Zhang Z, et al. Anterior facetectomy for reduction of cervical facet dislocation. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2016;41:E403–9. doi:10.1097/BRS.0000000000001260.
Razack N, Green BA, Levi AD. The management of traumatic cervical bilateral facet fracture-dislocations with unicortical anterior plates. J Spinal Disord. 2000;13:374–81.
Management of traumatic bilateral locked facets of the subaxial cervical spine: CME quiz. Contemp Neurosur. 2005;27:4.
Allen BL Jr, Ferguson RL, Lehmann TR, O’Brien RP. A mechanistic classification of closed, indirect fractures and dislocations of the lower cervical spine. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 1982;7:1–27.
Initial closed reduction of cervical spine fracture-dislocation injuries. Neurosurgery. 2002;50:S44–50.
Grant GA, et al. Risk of early closed reduction in cervical spine subluxation injuries. J Neurosurg. 1999;90:13–8.
Gelb DE, et al. Initial closed reduction of cervical spinal fracture-dislocation injuries. Neurosurgery. 2013;72(Suppl 2):73–83. doi:10.1227/NEU.0b013e318276ee02.
Gelb DE, et al. Treatment of subaxial cervical spinal injuries. Neurosurgery. 2013;72(Suppl 2):187–94. doi:10.1227/NEU.0b013e318276f637.
Doran SE, Papadopoulos SM, Ducker TB, Lillehei KO. Magnetic resonance imaging documentation of coexistent traumatic locked facets of the cervical spine and disc herniation. J Neurosurg. 1993;79:341–5. doi:10.3171/jns.1993.79.3.0341.
Harrington JF, Likavec MJ, Smith AS. Disc herniation in cervical fracture subluxation. Neurosurgery. 1991;29:374–9.
Vaccaro AR, et al. Magnetic resonance evaluation of the intervertebral disc, spinal ligaments, and spinal cord before and after closed traction reduction of cervical spine dislocations. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 1999;24:1210–7.
Woodworth RS, Molinari WJ, Brandenstein D, Gruhn W, Molinari RW. Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion with structural allograft and plates for the treatment of unstable posterior cervical spine injuries. J Neurosurg Spine. 2009;10:93–101. doi:10.3171/2008.11.SPI08615.
Henriques T, Olerud C, Bergman A, Jonsson H Jr. Distractive flexion injuries of the subaxial cervical spine treated with anterior plate alone. J Spinal Disord Tech. 2004;17:1–7.
Do Koh Y, Lim TH, Won You J, Eck J, An HS. A biomechanical comparison of modern anterior and posterior plate fixation of the cervical spine. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2001;26:15–21.
Kim SM, Lim TJ, Paterno J, Park J, Kim DH. A biomechanical comparison of three surgical approaches in bilateral subaxial cervical facet dislocation. J Neurosurg Spine. 2004;1:108–15. doi:10.3171/spi.2004.1.1.0108.
Stauffer ES, Kelly EG. Fracture-dislocations of the cervical spine. Instability and recurrent deformity following treatment by anterior interbody fusion. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1977;59:45–8.
Bartels RH, Donk R. Delayed management of traumatic bilateral cervical facet dislocation: surgical strategy. Report of three cases. J Neurosurg. 2002;97:362–5.
An HS. Cervical spine trauma. Spine. 1998;23:2713–29.
Lins CC, Prado DT, Joaquim AF. Surgical treatment of traumatic cervical facet dislocation: anterior, posterior or combined approaches? Arq Neuropsiquiatr. 2016;74:745–9. doi:10.1590/0004-282X20160078.
Sribnick EA, Hoh DJ, Dhall SS. Traumatic high-grade cervical dislocation: treatment strategies and outcomes. World Neurosurg. 2014;82:1374–9. doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2014.02.008.
Vale FL, Burns J, Jackson AB, Hadley MN. Combined medical and surgical treatment after acute spinal cord injury: results of a prospective pilot study to assess the merits of aggressive medical resuscitation and blood pressure management. J Neurosurg. 1997;87(2):239–46.
Hawryluk G, Whetstone W, Saigal R, Ferguson A, Talbott J, Bresnahan J, Dhall S, Pan J, Beattie M, Manley GJ. Mean arterial blood pressure correlates with neurological recovery after human spinal cord injury: analysis of high frequency physiologic data. Neurotrauma. 2015;32(24):1958–67. doi:10.1089/neu.2014.3778. Epub 2015 Aug 17.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Lee, Y.M., Osorio, J., Dhall, S. (2018). Cervical Traumatic Deformity (Bilateral Facet Dislocation) Complication. In: Mummaneni, P., Park, P., Crawford III, C., Kanter, A., Glassman, S. (eds) Spinal Deformity . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60083-3_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60083-3_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-60082-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-60083-3
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)