Cervical spine injuries: a follow-up of 332 patients

A follow-up of 332 consecutive cervical spine injury patients is described. Treatment was with collars (47%), operation (6%), skull traction (24%) and Halo vest (23%). There was a large number of cervical spine injuries at the C2 level, and odontoid process fractures constituted 35% of all cervical spine injuries. The bad reputation of cervical spine injuries with high mortality rates, high non-union rates, and a high incidence of severe neurological impairment could not be confirmed. Traffic accidents affected the younger age categories, and injuries from falls the older ages. The accidents occurred in 95% during leisure, and at least 22% of the patients were under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. Halo vest treatment gave a low complication rate, a low use of hospital bed days, sick leave and disability pension, compared with operations and skull traction treatment. The complication rate associated with the skull traction and operative treatment was unacceptably high.