Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33093693›Full record

ReviewThe Ulster medical journal2020

Vertebral Artery Injury in Cervical Spine Fractures: A Cohort Study and Review of the Literature.

Sheppard R, Kennedy Gem, Nelson A, Abdel Meguid E, Darwish N

Open access · greenAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in The Ulster medical journal, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 26% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Sheppard RSchool of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL.
Kennedy GemRoyal Victoria Hospital, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, 274 Grosvenor Road, Belfast, BT12 6BA.
Nelson ARoyal Victoria Hospital, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, 274 Grosvenor Road, Belfast, BT12 6BA.
Abdel Meguid ESchool of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL.
Darwish NRoyal Victoria Hospital, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, 274 Grosvenor Road, Belfast, BT12 6BA.
Belfast Health and Social Care Trust · GBQueen's University Belfast · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe risk of vertebral artery injury (VAI) secondary to cervical spine fracture is increasingly recognised in the literature. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of VAI amongst patients presenting to the Royal Victoria Hospital (Northern Ireland's regional trauma centre with emergency surgical spinal services) with acute cervical spine fractures, and to identify fracture patterns associated with the highest risk of VAI.

methodsA retrospective review of 1,894 computed tomography (CT) reports of patients who underwent imaging of their cervical spine and/or vertebral arteries over a 12-month period, from June 2018 to June 2019, was conducted.

resultsSixty-eight patients (3.59%) with a confirmed cervical spine fracture were identified. These patients had an age range of 18-97 years and included 39 males (57.4%) and 29 females (42.6%). The fractures were then classified according to the AOSpine Cervical Spine Fracture Classification. Of the 68 patients with a confirmed cervical spine fracture, five (7.35%) were diagnosed with VAI, all involving fractures of their upper cervical spine. Two involved fractures extending into the transverse foramen, two involved subluxation of the vertebrae and one involved both. In all five cases, these fractures resulted from high- energy injuries. Regarding management, the patients with VAI in this study were either monitored and given no specific treatment or treated medically with antiplatelet therapy. None underwent surgical intervention.

conclusionsFracture patterns associated with increased risk of VAI are fractures involving the upper cervical spine, fractures with associated subluxation, and fractures of the transverse process extending into the transverse foramen - urgent CT-angiography in these cases is recommended. Further work should develop a targeted set of criteria for screening for VAI in cervical spine fractures, with consideration of high-risk fracture patterns.

Indexed as

Vascular System InjuriesAdultAgedAged, 80 and overCervical VertebraeComputed Tomography AngiographyFemaleHumansIncidenceMaleMiddle AgedRetrospective StudiesSpinal FracturesTomography, X-Ray ComputedVertebral ArteryYoung Adultcervical spine fracturevertebral artery injury

Identifiers

PMID33093693
PMCPMC7576392
OpenAlexW3093479077

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.