Diagnosis and suggested treatment against an isolated unilateral rupture of the alar ligament – Concerning one case

• Published in: Neuro-chirurgie Vol. 63; no. 6; pp. 478 - 482
• Main Authors: Santin, M.-D.-N., Cebula, H., Ollivier, I., Todeschi, J., Baloglu, S., Proust, F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: France Elsevier Masson SAS 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Accidents, Traffic; Alar ligament; Atlanto-Axial Joint - diagnostic imaging; Atlanto-Axial Joint - injuries; Braces; Cervical; Cervical Vertebrae - diagnostic imaging; Cervical Vertebrae - injuries; Conservative Treatment; Healing; Humans; Joint Dislocations - diagnostic imaging; Joint Dislocations - etiology; Ligaments, Articular - diagnostic imaging; Ligaments, Articular - injuries; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; MRI; Neck Injuries - complications; Neck Injuries - diagnostic imaging; Rupture; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Treatment; Wound Healing; Young Adult; Healing; Alar ligament; Treatment; MRI; Cervical
• ISSN: 0028-3770; 1773-0619
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neuchi.2017.07.002

An isolated rupture of the alar ligament is a rare occurrence with only a few cases reported in the literature. The objective was to report the case of a young man with a unilateral rupture of the alar ligament that we closely monitored, clinically and radiologically, in order to describe the evolution of the alar ligament lesions. Radiological diagnosis using cervical MRI and duration of the conservative treatment remain debated and we proposed a close radiological follow-up in order to best understand the nature of these ligament lesions and their evolution following specific treatment.