Injuries to the spinal column can have potentially severe long-term consequences. The American College of Surgeons recently released a set of guidelines on managing spinal cord injuries (SCI) and spinal cord fractures. The guidelines cover various aspects of the treatment of SCI. Part 1 of these guidelines focuses on the initial management of SCI and diagnosing the exact type of spinal trauma and spinal fractures. Part 2 of this series will discuss the therapeutic interventions, management, and rehabilitation of patients.
##Non-surgical interventions: ## Surgical intervention is necessary for occipital fractures only if neural compression occurs or any misalignment between the cranial and the cervical region of the spine occurs. Cervical fractures Fractures to the C1 can be managed non-surgically. Fractures presenting with ligament tears require surgery. Stabilization with Halo for…
