Injuries of the spine and of the spinal cord in the Hippocratic Corpus of medicine.

The purpose of this review article is to summarize the views presented in the Hippocratic Corpus of Medicine regarding injuries of the spine, their effect on the spinal cord and the optimal treatment modulus. It is shown that the treatment dilemmas of ancient times in these injuries remain modern since Hippocrates suggested that conservative treatment and letting nature take its course is preferable over a devastating surgical treatment if the spinal cord structural integrity is not compromised. There is also a detailed account of the conservative treatment suggested in the Hippocratic Corpus concerning devices and method of closed spinal relocations.

Old injuries of the lower cervical spine treated surgically.

The present study involves 16 surgically treated patients who had sustained an old injury of their lower cervical spine. This group represents the 29% of the 55 patients that were admitted in our Department with an old injury of the cervical spine. The aim of the present study is to see the effect of surgery on these old injuries in relation to clinical and radiological parameters.

The anterior inferior angle fracture of a lower cervical vertebra.

Thirty-eight cases of a "tear drop" fracture of the lower cervical spine treated in our department during the last 20 years are reported. They represent 8.3% of all cervical injuries.

Fractures of the dens and risk of pseudarthrosis.

This study deals with 49 fractures of the dens treated at the Orthopedic Department of Athens University during the past 17 years. These fractures represent 14.2% of all cervical fractures treated during the same period at our department.