Mortara R W, Flanagan M
Neurosurgery. 1980 Feb;6(2):176-80. doi: 10.1227/00006123-198002000-00010.
The authors present the second reported case of acute central cervical spinal cord syndrome caused by a missile injury. A low caliber, low velocity bullet penetrated the spinal cord posteroanteriorly at C-2, C-3 in the midline, producing quadriplegia and respiratory failure. Within 3 months the patient was ambulatory. Because such a good outcome is possible, patients with similar injuries should be supported vigorously. Injury to the central cervical spinal cord seems to produce a constant syndrome irrespective of the specific nature of the primary injury. The literature on this syndrome is briefly reviewed.
