Degenerative Spine
A 70-year-old man with type 2 diabetes presents after a ground-level fall with severe neck pain. He has longstanding thoracic stiffness but denies prior spinal problems. Examination reveals tenderness over the mid-cervical spine with limited neck motion. He is neurologically intact. Radiographs show flowing anterolateral ossification along the right side of the thoracic spine involving at least four contiguous vertebrae, preserved disc heights, and a hyperextension fracture through C5. Regarding diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH):
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DISH (also known as Forestier disease) is a systemic enthesopathy characterized by ossification of l...
Risk factors include age (typically greater than 50 years, prevalence 25% in those greater than 75),...
DISH primarily affects young patients; ossification occurs on the left side of the thoracic spine; t...
DISH patients are at increased risk of spinal fractures from minor trauma due to the rigid, ankylose...
Management of DISH fractures: maintain spinal immobilization and high index of suspicion; surgical s...
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Click T (True) or F (False) for each option