Differences between different posterior stabilization at atlanto-axial joint

Abstract

Summary form only given. Trauma and disorders are the major cause of spinal cord injuries at the C1-C level, which have resulted in complete or incomplete loss of sensory and motor functions. More and more accidents occur, which spend a lot of money in surgical treatment and rehabilitation. Conservative therapy or surgical treatment with internal fixation devices has been commonly used to stabilize the spine and enhance spine fusion for minimized compression in spinal cod leading to neurological deficits and other secondary injuries. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of various internal fixation devices for improving rotation stiffness of unstable atlanto-axial joint using a canine model. The results indicated that posterolateral plating provided the optimal stiffness across C1-2 in all the 6 tested directions than did the other 2 techniques although both the latter also had significantly increased stiffness compared to control group (P<0.05). Also, the results supported the use of each tested stabilization techniques for fixing the atlanto-axial instability. For preserving the optimal C1-2 motibility, procedures such as posterior wiring and/or Halifax interlaminar clamping rather than posterolateral plating and screwing should be considered first.