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Posterior atlantoaxial dislocation complicating odontoid fracture without neurologic deficit: a case report and review of the literature

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Abstract

Traumatic posterior atlantoaxial dislocation associated with odontoid fracture is extremely rare, with only eight cases reported thus far in the English literature. This report concerns a 47-year-old female who presented with considerable pain and stiffness in the neck without a neurologic deficit after injury due to a fall. Radiographs, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a posterior dislocation of the atlas with respect to the axis with an odontoid fracture. No cord compression or intramedullary cord signal abnormalities were detected at the level of the atlantoaxial dislocation. A pedicle screw fixation/fusion was performed via a posterior approach following successful closed reduction.

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Conflict of interest

No funds were received in support of this work. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Correspondence to Zhuojing Luo or Junjie Du.

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Hao Meng, Yuan Gao, and Mo Li contributed equally to this work.

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Meng, H., Gao, Y., Li, M. et al. Posterior atlantoaxial dislocation complicating odontoid fracture without neurologic deficit: a case report and review of the literature. Skeletal Radiol 43, 1001–1006 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-013-1809-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-013-1809-y

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