Cervical spin protocol for emergency room use.
At the University of Alabama Hospitals, we have established a protocol of routine and supplementary projections to provide an unusually thorough and complete evaluation of the patient suspected of harboring certain acute cervical spine injuries. This paper reports an evaluation of a protocol designed for use in the radiographic emergency room. The protocol was designed to provide uniform roentgen assessment of the cervical spine with a minimum number of exposures, ease in radiographing the patient, and strict avoidance of manipulation of the patient. A total of 268 patients were evaluated. Of these patients, 98 (thirty-six per cent) were admitted to the hospital for various reasons and none required additional roentgenograms of the cervical spine for better delineation. In addition, in no instance was a previously undiagnosed cervical spine injury later found.
D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000293:injuries; D004630:Emergencies; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D008722:Methods; D014056:Tomography, X-Ray / Q000379:methods