Inflammatory Spine
A 55-year-old man with a 30-year history of ankylosing spondylitis presents after a minor fall. He has severe neck pain and cannot move his head. His spine is completely rigid with a fixed thoracic kyphosis. He has tingling in all four limbs. The patient was previously ambulatory. CT scan shows a transverse fracture through the C6-7 disc space extending through all three columns with translation. There is epidural hematoma causing cord compression. Regarding ankylosing spondylitis and spinal fractures:
Mark each as TRUE or FALSE
Ankylosing spondylitis is a seronegative spondyloarthropathy with strong HLA-B27 association (greate...
Spinal fractures in AS are characteristically "chalk stick" or transverse fractures extending throug...
Spinal fractures in AS require high-energy trauma; the lumbar spine is most commonly fractured; neur...
Imaging must include CT scan (identifies fracture through ossified structures) and MRI (evaluates ep...
Surgical stabilization is typically required due to extreme instability; long-segment fixation acros...
Answer the questions to see explanations
Click T (True) or F (False) for each option