Quantitative analysis of the cervical spinal canal by computed tomography

Neuroradiology. 1986;28(2):139-43. doi: 10.1007/BF00327886.

Abstract

Computed tomography measurements of the AP diameter, width, and cross-sectional area of the bony cervical canal were derived from cervical spine examinations of fifty-two normal adults. These quantitative parameters were then used to evaluate 80 patients with various cervical abnormalities to determine the clinical usefulness of the measurements. With the exception of spinal stenosis, quantitative cervical canal analysis was found to be of limited usefulness since normal measurements frequently occurred in the presence of significant cervical pathology.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Cervical Vertebrae / diagnostic imaging
  • Female
  • Fractures, Bone / diagnostic imaging
  • Humans
  • Intervertebral Disc Displacement / diagnostic imaging
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neck
  • Reference Values
  • Spinal Canal / diagnostic imaging*
  • Spinal Injuries / diagnostic imaging
  • Spinal Osteophytosis / diagnostic imaging
  • Syringomyelia / diagnostic imaging
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed*