Sports-Related Cervical Spine Injuries

Cervical spine injuries are uncommon in children yet can be associated with significant morbidity and mortality. They are primarily seen after blunt trauma. Injuries can occur to bones, ligaments, muscles, spinal cord, nerves, blood vessels, or in some combination of multiple injuries. Prompt recognition and treatment are essential to limit morbidity and mortality. As a result of developing anatomy, children suffer different types and locations of cervical spine injury as compared with adults. Many traumatic cervical spine injuries as well as cervical spinal cord injuries are not apparent on initial radiographs; this presents diagnostic challenges for the clinician. The purpose of this article is to describe the evaluation of the potential cervical spine injured athlete.