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Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND: The management of metastatic spinal disease is generally considered palliative, as the progression of systemic disease is likely to hinder survival. Although the occurrence of C1-C2 instability due to metastatic disease is not uncommon and thus treatment options have been well-defined, c...

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Autores principales: Xu, Risheng, Sciubba, Daniel M., Gokaslan, Ziya L., Bydon, Ali
Formato: Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Medknow Publications 2010
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2908354/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20657697
http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/2152-7806.63911
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author Xu, Risheng
Sciubba, Daniel M.
Gokaslan, Ziya L.
Bydon, Ali
author_facet Xu, Risheng
Sciubba, Daniel M.
Gokaslan, Ziya L.
Bydon, Ali
author_sort Xu, Risheng
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: The management of metastatic spinal disease is generally considered palliative, as the progression of systemic disease is likely to hinder survival. Although the occurrence of C1-C2 instability due to metastatic disease is not uncommon and thus treatment options have been well-defined, craniocervical instability due to lesions occurring at the junction of the occiput and atlas is more rare, and treatment for metastasis to this region is less well-defined. CASE DESCRIPTION: We present a patient with non-small-cell lung cancer metastatic to the atlanto-occipital facet joint complex. A drastic improvement in the presenting debilitating mechanical neck pain was noted following an occipitocervical fusion. A literature review of published cases of metastases to the occipitocervical junction was conducted along with treatment options. CONCLUSIONS: The atlanto-occipital facet joint is a rare site of metastatic disease. Destruction of this joint can lead to significant neck pain secondary to instability. Spinal fusion may afford significant and rapid resolution of these symptoms, and should be considered in the management of patients—even those with end-stage oncologic disease.
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spelling pubmed-29083542010-07-23 Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature Xu, Risheng Sciubba, Daniel M. Gokaslan, Ziya L. Bydon, Ali Surg Neurol Int Cases BACKGROUND: The management of metastatic spinal disease is generally considered palliative, as the progression of systemic disease is likely to hinder survival. Although the occurrence of C1-C2 instability due to metastatic disease is not uncommon and thus treatment options have been well-defined, craniocervical instability due to lesions occurring at the junction of the occiput and atlas is more rare, and treatment for metastasis to this region is less well-defined. CASE DESCRIPTION: We present a patient with non-small-cell lung cancer metastatic to the atlanto-occipital facet joint complex. A drastic improvement in the presenting debilitating mechanical neck pain was noted following an occipitocervical fusion. A literature review of published cases of metastases to the occipitocervical junction was conducted along with treatment options. CONCLUSIONS: The atlanto-occipital facet joint is a rare site of metastatic disease. Destruction of this joint can lead to significant neck pain secondary to instability. Spinal fusion may afford significant and rapid resolution of these symptoms, and should be considered in the management of patients—even those with end-stage oncologic disease. Medknow Publications 2010-05-31 /pmc/articles/PMC2908354/ /pubmed/20657697 http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/2152-7806.63911 Text en © 2010 Bydon A http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Cases
Xu, Risheng
Sciubba, Daniel M.
Gokaslan, Ziya L.
Bydon, Ali
Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title_full Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title_fullStr Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title_full_unstemmed Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title_short Metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: A case report and review of the literature
title_sort metastasis to the occipitocervical junction: a case report and review of the literature
topic Cases
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2908354/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20657697
http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/2152-7806.63911
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