Non-Surgical Treatment in Acute and Chronic Grisel’s Syndrome: Two Case Reports and Literature Review

Abstract

Grisel’s syndrome, which involves non-traumatic atlantoaxial rotatory subluxation, is a rare disease that occurs primarily in children. Herein, we present two cases of chronic and acute Grisel’s syndrome that were successfully treated with traction and medication as non-surgical management. A 10-year-old male patient was diagnosed with chronic Grisel’s syndrome after surgery to remove cholesteatoma in his left ear 6 months previously (Case 1), and a 5-year-old female patient was diagnosed with acute Grisel’s syndrome after acute pharyngitis (Case 2). Both patients were treated with pain control and halo traction, which corrected torticollis and relieved their symptoms.