Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Mar 29:24:280-283.
doi: 10.1016/j.jor.2021.03.012. eCollection 2021 Mar-Apr.

Risk factors of non-union in Anderson-D'Alonzo type III odontoid fractures with conservative treatment

Affiliations

Risk factors of non-union in Anderson-D'Alonzo type III odontoid fractures with conservative treatment

Hiroyuki Koshimizu et al. J Orthop. .

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was retrospectively to analyze the risk factors for non-union in Anderson-D'Alonzo type III odontoid fractures with conservative treatment.

Methods: 25 patients with type III fractures were analyzed. Coronal and sagittal tilt as well as sagittal and lateral mass gaps were measured by using computed tomography.

Results: The non-union group had significantly higher age, greater coronal tilt and lateral mass gap. Especially, the lateral mass gap was >2 mm in all cases with non-union.

Conclusions: Higher age, coronal tilt, and lateral mass gap were significant risk factors for non-union.

Keywords: Anderson–D’Alonzo type III odontoid Fractures; Conservative treatment; Non-union; Risk factors.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The measurement of (A) sagittal tilt, (B) sagittal gap, (C) coronal tilt, and (D) lateral mass gap on computed tomography.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Computed tomography (CT) images from a 92-year-old female who fell and diagnosed as an Anderson–D’Alonzo type III odontoid fracture. Sagittal and coronal CT showed (A) the sagittal gap: 0 mm, sagittal tilt angle: 8.0° (B), and lateral mass gap was 2.0 mm(C). The coronal tilt angle was 9.0°. The patient had neck pain without neurologic impairments. (D–F) Sagittal and coronal CT images at the final follow-up showed non-union despite hard collar treatment for 6 months. The white arrows indicate fracture lines for each panel.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Ryan M.D., Henderson J.J. The epidemiology of fractures and fracture-dislocations of the cervical spine. Injury. 1992;23:38–40. - PubMed
    1. Anderson L.D., D'Alonzo R.T. Fractures of the odontoid process of the axis. J Bone Jt Surg Am Vol. 1974;56:1663–1674. - PubMed
    1. Grasso G., Leone L., Torregrossa F. Management of odontoid cervical fracture. World Neurosurg. 2019;123:246–247. - PubMed
    1. Iyer S., Hurlbert R.J., Albert T.J. Management of odontoid fractures in the elderly: a review of the literature and an evidence-based treatment algorithm. Neurosurgery. 2017;82:419–430. - PubMed
    1. Clark C.R., White A.A., 3rd Fractures of the dens. A multicenter study. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1985;67:1340–1348. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources