Cervical Facet Pain




(1)
Department of Anaesthesia, Royal Free Hospital, London, UK

 



It is a mix of symptoms with pain in the neck, head, shoulder and upper extremity. The pain does not follow the dermatomal pattern. It is seen more in females and manifests itself in middle ages. Risk factors include genetics and smoking. The prevalence is between 30 and 70 %. C5–C6 is most commonly involved.


50.1 Clinical Anatomy


Facet joints extend from C2–C3 to C7–T1. They are synovial joints. The joint is innervated by two medial branches, one at the same level and one from the level above.


50.2 Clinical Features


Patients present with diffuse neck pain which is dull in character. Mostly, it is unilateral and gets worse with flexion, extension and lateral bending of the neck. It is not associated with motor or sensory deficit.



Pattern of pain at different cervical levels








C1–C2

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Mar 20, 2017 | Posted by in PAIN MEDICINE | Comments Off on Cervical Facet Pain

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