OBJECTIVE: To perform a radiographic evaluation of the cervical spine injury treated with posterior fixation techniques only. METHODS: From 2000 to 2008, twenty three patients were included in the study, of which 91,3% were men, with a mean age of thirty-four years and four months. The mean follow-up time was 82 months. The type of implant used, the radiographic arthrodesis consolidation, implant failure, lost of reduction, segmental kyphosis and pseudarthrosis were evaluatedin the preoperative period, the immediate postoperative period and after six months of evolution, based on the patients records. RESULTS: When it comes to the type of implant used, there were 60,8% of the patients who underwent interspinous wire fixation, 26% with lateral mass screws and plate and 13% with lateral mass screws and rods. Of the lateral mass screws patients, none had radiographic complications and 35,7% of the interspinous wire patients had complications being the segmental kyphosis the most frequent of them. CONCLUSIONS: The cervical spine injuries that underwent lateral mass screw fixation showed better radiographic results, with less complications than the interspinous wire fixation.
Cervical vertebrae; Fracture Fixation; Orthopedic fixation devices; Internal fixators; Spinal fractures; Spinal injuries; Cervical cerclage
