Traumatic hangman's fracture after cervical disk arthroplasty with device in-tact: A case report and literature review

Abstract

Cervical disk arthroplasty anterior cervical discectomy and fusion trauma artificial disk extrusion Prodisc-C a b s t r a c t Background Context: Cervical disk arthroplasty (CDA) has been demonstrated to be a safe and effective method to treat myelopathy with the added benefit of preserving neck mobility compared to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). Few studies describe complications of trauma after CDA, and to our knowledge this is the only study describing a grossly intact artificial cervical disk (ACD) without extrusion after high energy trauma. Based on our case and a review of literature, we hypothesize that, given adequate osseous integration (OI), CDA may be a safe intervention despite their risk for higher energy trauma.Purpose: To present a rare case of high-energy trauma after CDA resulting in a Hangman's fracture and grossly in-tact ACD and to engage a biomechanical discussion of trauma after CDA and ACDF utilizing a literature review.Study Design/Setting: Case-report with literature review and discussion Patient Sample: Electronic medical record data Outcome Measures: Computed Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and X-Ray physiologic measures Methods: We report the case of a 44-year-old woman who received a C5-C6 level CDA with a (Synthes Prodisc-C©, Synthes Spine Company, L.P., West Chester, PA) and was subsequently involved in a high-speed motorcycle accident one-and-a-half years later resulting in a Hangman's fracture.