%0 Journal Article
%T An Odontoid Fracture Causing Apnea, Cardiac Instability, and Quadriplegia
%A Christian A. Bowers
%A Gregory F. Jost
%A Andrew T. Dailey
%J Case Reports in Critical Care
%D 2012
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2012/821565
%X Odontoid fractures are typically associated with low rates of acute neurologic deficit and morbidity/mortality in nonelderly patients. In the patient in this case, traumatic injury triggered by a syncopal event led to a combined C1-C2 fracture and a fatal spinal cord injury with apnea, quadriplegia, and cardiovascular instability. We briefly review the anatomical basis for the pathophysiology of cardiac dysfunction following high-cervical spine injury and present an example of a worst-case scenario.
%U http://www.hindawi.com/crim/cc/2012/821565/