Complex upper cervical spine injury associated with vertebral artery injury and sensory deficit: A case report.

Abstract

Introduction. Multiple levels cervical spine injuries constitute less than half of all cervical spine injuries. They occur following severe trauma. There is a high risk of associated cranio-cervical vascular injury.Case presentation. We present a young adult patient who sustained complex multiple contiguous upper cervical spine ( C2-C3) fractures associated with asymptomatic vertebral artery thrombosis and sensory deficits involving C2 � C4 dermatomes. She underwent successful anterior cervical arthrodesis. She was followed up for fifteen months. Clinically she showed improvement, but the neck disability index was 46% at the last visit.Conclusion. Complex cervical spine injury may have significant morbidity despite successful surgical intervention