Cervical spine instability

What it means

An abnormal lack of stability of the cervical spine.

The cervical spine is made up of two anatomically and functionally distinct segments: the upper cervical spine (C1and C2), which possesses the most rotational mobility with some degrees of frontal and sagittal plane mobility, and the lower cervical spine, which allows for two types of movements - flexion-extension and inclination-rotation. Cervical instability mainly involves the upper cervical spine, particularly between C1 and C2. Craniocervical ligaments are the main determinants of cervical spine stability.

Rare diseases that can present with this4

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category