Reduction of Atlanto-Occipital Dislocation After Cervical Collar Removal

A 39-year-old male pedestrian-hit-by-car was transferred to our institution with atlantooccipital dislocation (AOD) on outside computed tomography (CT) imaging. On arrival he had a rigid cervical collar in place. Given the reported AOD, we placed the patient flat, removed the cervical collar, and supported the head in neutral alignment with sandbags. Due to a technical issue uploading his prior imaging to our system, the patient underwent repeat CTs at our center. Subsequently, after the outside images were uploaded, we were able to compare his cervical spine CT images before and after removing his cervical collar. On comparison, we noted a substantial reduction in AOD after collar removal. We hope this serves as a reminder of this key step in managing a rare but deadly clinical entity and a small demonstration of the efficacy of this intervention.