1. Occipitocervical fixation in nontraumatic upper cervical spine instability.
- Author
-
Rea GL, Mullin BB, Mervis LJ, and Miller CL
- Subjects
- Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Arthritis, Rheumatoid complications, Humans, Joint Instability etiology, Klippel-Feil Syndrome complications, Middle Aged, Spinal Neoplasms complications, Atlanto-Occipital Joint surgery, Joint Instability surgery
- Abstract
Ten patients requiring occipitocervical fixation were reviewed: five were unstable secondary to rheumatoid arthritis, one had Klippel-Feil, and four had neoplastic disease. Patients with nonneoplastic disease improved, having decreased pain, decreased paresthesias, and increased ambulation. Patients with neoplastic disease improved significantly after the surgery, but eventually died from different tumors. The technique found to be most efficient was the placement of an intraoperatively contoured Luque rectangle wired from the occiput to appropriate cervical spine levels.
- Published
- 1993
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