Cervical fusion

The diagnosis of stability of a cervical fusion is best evaluated in a dynamic manner. With use of a 1.5-T General Electric Signa magnetic resonance (MR) imager, ten patients with surgical fusions were evaluated with a series of midsagittal cervical gradient echo-recalled MR images obtained through their range of cervical extension, from a flexed format and in a dynamic cine mode. The fusion was readily evaluated. Additional motion traditionally causes early degenerative disk disease and osteophytic ridging at the levels adjacent to the fused segments