$odontoid fracture type 1$

$odontoid fracture type 1$

According to literature, the geriatric population is particularly exposed to an increased risk of complications if a cervical collar is used. The external stabilization of the cervical spine using a cervical collar as part of pre-hospital trauma care remains controversial. Geriatric trauma patients have a higher mortality rate and, therefore, require special attention. Due to demographic changes, the number of geriatric trauma patients is constantly increasing. It is unclear whether this change in facial structure has an influence on the remaining motion after external immobilization of the cervical spine. Furthermore, in contrast to young patients, a typical geriatric facial structure is described. These low-impact trauma mechanisms are one factor that may explain why these patients are often under-triaged by Emergency Medical Service personnel (EMS) at the scene of an accident as well as in the admitted hospital. Thus, unlike odontoid fractures in young patients, these injuries in the geriatric population are mainly caused by minor trauma and falls at home. Poor bone quality together with pre-existing conditions, such as osteopenia and osteoporosis, are considered to be the main reasons accounting for odontoid fractures in the geriatric population. Type II odontoid fractures are the most common, representing up to 68% of all odontoid fractures. This classification distinguishes three types of odontoid fracture: a type I odontoid fracture is located at the tip of the dens axis in type II, the fracture line runs through the base of the dens axis and in type III, the corpus of the dens axis is affected. In 1974, Anderson and D’Alonzo developed a system for classification of odontoid fracture that is still in use today. In the geriatric population, the most common fractures of the cervical spine are odontoid fractures, accounting for more than 50% of total cervical spine fractures.

$odontoid fracture type 1$

Odontoid fracture type 1