Degenerative cervical spondylosis: clinical syndromes, pathogenesis, and management.

Degenerative changes in the cervical spinal column are ubiquitous in the adult population, but infrequently symptomatic. The evaluation of patients with symptoms is facilitated by classifying the resulting clinical syndromes into axial neck pain, cervical radiculopathy, cervical myelopathy, or a combination of these conditions. Although most patients with axial neck pain, cervical radiculopathy, or mild cervical myelopathy respond well to initial nonsurgical treatment, those who continue to have symptoms or patients with clinically evident myelopathy are candidates for surgical intervention.