The cervical split: a pseudofracture

A horizontal lucent line projecting over a cervical vertebral body on lateral radiographs and simulating a fracture is described. The pseudofracture line results from the lucency between contiguous proliferative osteophytes at the uncinate process/vertebral articulation. Associated disc space narrowing was seen in all of our eleven cases. The origin of this pseudofracture line, cases illustrating this phenomenon, and additional projections helpful for clarification are presented.