Abstract Summary
Bilateral cervical facet dislocation (BFD) with facet fracture (Fx) is a devastating neck injury that is rarely recreated experimentally. Neck muscle activation increases intervertebral shear and compression forces during cervical trauma, but the role of these combined loads during BFD is understudied. A method was developed to reliably apply destructive, constrained anterior shear motion with superimposed intervertebral axial compression or distraction to human cadaver cervical motion segments. The effect of superimposed axial compression versus distraction on facet mechanics and fracture mechanism was assessed for the five (of 12) specimens for which 20 mm of anterior shear was achieved. BFD+Fx was produced in all five of these specimens.
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