Case
A 41-year-old woman presented to the ED with a 3-day history of posterior neck pain that radiated to the occipital region. The patient stated that the day prior to presentation, the pain had worsened to what she rated as a “9” on a pain scale of 0 to 10. The patient’s surgical history included a remote prior cervical fusion at C5-C6. A lateral radiograph of the cervical spine is shown above (Figure 1a).
Figure 1a
What is the diagnosis? Is additional imaging necessary? If so, why?