By Robert Linnehan
SAN DIEGO — Pediatric cervical facet dislocations are a rare occurrence that offer little neurological recovery, according to the results of a retrospective study presented here.
Cervical facet dislocations are devastating injuries for pediatric patients with unique features, according to Carlo Bellabarba, MD, but these dislocation are rare in children because of the greater resilience of the pediatric spine. 
“Cervical facet dislocations are uncommon in the pediatric population,” he said at the Cervical Spine Research Society Annual Meeting. “We think that is probably because of the fact that the spine is more stable and less susceptible to dislocation, and therefore requires a higher energy mechanism. When they do occur, as a consequence, they tend to have a higher likelihood of severe neurological deficit and a lower likelihood of neurological recovery.”