Citation

Cain CM, Simpson DA, Ryan GA, Manock CH, James RA. Am. J. Forensic Med. Pathol. 1989; 10(3): 193-195.

Affiliation

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Trauma, Royal Adelaide Hospital, South Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1989, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

2782294

Abstract

A lateral radiograph of the cervical spine was obtained for 174 of the 207 persons killed in road crashes in Adelaide, South Australia, during the 12-month period of June 1, 1987 to May 31, 1988. Of the total of 57 cases of cervical injury, routine postmortem examination identified 30 cases (52.6%), and the radiographic examinations identified 51 cases (89.5%). In the cases where it was performed, radiography identified 96.2% of injuries. One-half of injuries of level C3 and above were not reported at postmortem examination, compared with 22% of those occurring below this level. This finding correlates with the physical difficulties of examining the upper part of the cervical spine. This study has shown that lateral cervical radiography is a simple and effective method of more accurately identifying significant cervical spinal injuries, thus improving greatly the value of postmortem examinations in determining the patterns and mechanisms of these injuries.

Language: en