Cervical spinal cord hemorrhages in experimental head injuries

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

✓ Petechial hemorrhages at the cervicomedullary junction have been noted in football players who sustained direct “head-on” or vertex impacts when they struck an opponent. Head and cervical spinal cord injuries were produced in experimental animals on an impact track simulating this mechanism. Severe cervical spinal cord destruction was obtained in the absence of cervical flexion and extension. Cord movement was enhanced by sectioning the dentate ligaments, which prevented these lesions. It is postulated that the transmission of shear strains along the axis of acceleration is responsible for the hemorrhages when the elastic deformation of the cervical spinal cord is exceeded.