Spinal Disorders
A 55-year-old man with a 30-year history of ankylosing spondylitis presents after a mechanical fall. He reports new onset of neck pain worse than his baseline chronic pain. He has a fixed kyphotic posture. Examination reveals midline cervical tenderness at C6-7. Initial radiographs are difficult to interpret due to the fused spine, but CT shows a transverse fracture through C6-7 extending through all three columns. MRI shows an epidural hematoma without cord compression. He is neurologically intact. Regarding spine fractures in ankylosing spondylitis:
Mark each as TRUE or FALSE
Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a seronegative spondyloarthropathy with strong HLA-B27 association (9...
Patients with AS have increased fracture risk due to osteoporosis (from chronic inflammation and red...
AS patients have increased bone density making fractures rare; fractures are stable due to ligamento...
Imaging should include CT of the entire spine (high rate of non-contiguous injuries) and MRI (to ass...
Surgical stabilization is typically recommended due to the high instability; long segment fixation i...
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Click T (True) or F (False) for each option