Completely dislocated hangman's fracture with a locked C2-3 facet. Case report.
The authors report a rare case of a hangman's fracture involving complete dislocation of C-2 onto C-3, accompanied by a C2-3 locked facet and asymptomatic bilateral vertebral artery injuries. The patient, a 25-year-old man who sustained a neck injury in an industrial accident, presented with a mild central spinal cord syndrome. His initial lateral cervical radiograph showed complete anterior dislocation of the C-2 body onto C-3, bilateral neural arch fractures, and a unilateral locked facet. The mechanism was likely flexion and compression. The grossly unstable spine and the locked facet were treated by posterior decompression, reduction, and C1-3 fixation. The patient recovered in several days and is without neurological deficit.
Choi
W G
WG
Division of Neurological Surgery, Barrow Neurological Institute, Mercy Healthcare Arizona, Phoenix 85013-4496, USA.
Vishteh
A G
AG
Baskin
J J
JJ
Marciano
F F
FF
Dickman
C A
CA
D000328:Adult; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy