Imaging of the Cervical Spine > Fractures > Stability

Stability

The determination of whether a given injury is stable is extremely important in the initial evaluation of cervical spine trauma. The stability of the cervical spine is provided by the two vertical columns. The anterior column consists of the vertebral bodies, the disc spaces, the anterior and posterior longitudinal ligaments and annulus fibrosus. The posterior column consists of the pedicles, facets and apophyseal joints, laminar spinous processes and the posterior ligament complex. Generally speaking, if one of the two columns is intact, the injury is stable, if both columns are disrupted, the injury is unstable.