Neurological recovery after surgical intervention of a complete spinal cord injury secondary to a chronic untreated odontoid neck fracture: a lesson in patient prognostication.

Odontoid fractures are injuries that can either be benign or devastatingly progress to quadriplegia and significant morbidity and mortality. Management is not clear cut for patients who already present late and with severe neurological deficits. We present a case of a type 2 odontoid fracture with associated complete spinal cord injury (American Spinal Injury Association A) initially untreated for 3 months but was subsequently managed with posterior decompression, instrumentation and occipitocervical fusion. The patient fully recovered all deficits and is independent of activities of daily living. © BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2019. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.