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Burst fracture

Dr Ahmed Abd Rabou and Dr Jeremy Jones et al.

A burst fracture (also called a compression fracture) may occur at any spinal level, but most commonly occurs in the cervical spine. When in the thoraco lumbar level it tends to occur between T9 and L5 levels ³.

Pathology

Mechanism

It is a result of a compressive injury (axial loading), much like the Jefferson fracture.

The intervertebral disc is driven into the vertebral body below.

All patients require a CT to assess the injury and evaluate the extent of retropulsed fragments which may enter the spinal canal.

Radiographic features

General features include

'burst' vertebral body on axial CT.
loss of posterior vertebral height on lateral views.
retropulsed fragments in the spinal canal.
interpedicular widening

Differential diagnosis

butterfly vertebra : well corticated congenital division of vertebrae seen on coronal images ; no antecedent trauma history

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