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KMID : 1103720200810030654
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Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
2020 Volume.81 No. 3 p.654 ~ p.664
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Ossification of the Transverse Ligament of the Atlas on CT: Frequency and Associated Findings
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Son Suk-Woo
Ryu Jeong-Ah
Kim Tae-Yeob
Kim Sung-Jun
Lee Seung-Hun
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Abstract
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Purpose: To determine the frequency of ossification of the transverse ligament of the atlas (OTLA) and to investigate the associated findings on cervical spine CT and plain radiography.
Materials and Methods: We reviewed 5201 CT scans of the cervical spine of 3975 consecutive patients over an 11-year period for the presence of OTLA and compared them with those of age- and sex-matched controls. The frequency and associated findings of OTLA were investigated and statistically correlated.
Results: The overall frequency of OTLA was 1.1% (45 of 3975 patients) and increased with age (p < 0.005). The frequency of OTLA in patients over 80 years was 12%. The space available for the spinal cord (SAC) was smaller in patients with OTLA (p < 0.005). Mineralization of the complex of the anterior atlantooccipital membrane and Barkow ligament, ossification of the ligamentum flavum, and kyphosis of the cervical spine positively correlated to the presence of OTLA (p < 0.005).
Conclusion: OTLA was associated with age, SAC narrowing, cervical kyphosis, and ossification of other cervical ligaments and may be associated with degenerative spondylosis, systemic hyperostotic status, or mechanical stress or instability.
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KEYWORD
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Multidetector Computed Tomography, Spine, Ligaments
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