Treatment of atlantoaxial instability with atlantoaxial pedicle and lateral mass screw WANG

Objective To study the effect of atlantoaxial pedicle and lateral mass screw in treat-ment of atlantoaxial instability. Methods A retrospective analysis was done on 11 eases of aflantoaxi-al instability treated with atlantoaxial pedicle and lateralmass screw from June 2006 to December 2007. Results The postoperative radiographs verified good position of all screws, with satisfactory atlantoaxial reduction. Follow-up for 3-21 months (average 12 months) showed no spinal cord and vertebral artery in-jury or interfixation failure. Conclusion Atlantoaxial pediele and lateral mass screw technique is a convenient method with solid fixation for treatment of atlantoaxial instability. Key words: Atlas;  Atlanto-axial joint;  Fracture fixation, internal;  Spinal fusion