Isolated unilateral rupture of the alar ligament

Abstract

Only 6 cases of isolated unilateral rupture of the alar ligament have been previously reported. The authors report a new case and review the literature, morbid anatomy, and pathogenesis of this rare injury. The patient in their case, a 9-year-old girl, fell head first from a height of 5 feet off the ground. She presented with neck pain, a leftward head tilt, and severe limitation of right rotation, extension, and right lateral flexion of the neck. Plain radiographs and CT revealed no fracture but a shift of the dens toward the right lateral mass of C-1. Magnetic resonance imaging of the cervical spine showed signal hyperintensity within the left dens-atlas space on both T1- and T2-weighted sequences and interruption of the expected dark signal representing the left alar ligament, suggestive of its rupture. After 12 weeks of immobilization in a Guilford brace, MRI showed lessened dens deviation, and the patient attained full and painless neck motion. Including the patient in this case, the 7 patients with this injury were between 5 and 21 years old, sustained the injury in traffic accidents or falls, presented with marked neck pain, and were treated with external immobilization. All patients had good clinical outcome. The mechanism of injury is hyperflexion with rotation. Isolated unilateral alar ligament rupture is a diagnosis made by excluding associated fracture, dislocation, or disruption of other major ligamentous structures in the craniovertebral junction. CT and MRI are essential in establishing the diagnosis. External immobilization is adequate treatment.