Upper Cervical Spine Anatomy
Overview
The
upper cervical complex is one of the most important joints in the human body. Its unique anatomy is responsible for providing a highly mobile functional support for the skull, while protecting the spinal cord from injury. It is only when the cervical spine becomes dysfunctional that we begin to appreciate the importance of its role in the performance of daily activities. Because the upper cervical spine is capable of extremely complex patterns of motion, we can enhance our ability to understand these patterns by subdividing the occipital-atlanto-axial joint into two motion segments (
C0/C1 and
C1/C2), where each motion segment consists of two adjacent bony structures and their associated soft tissues. By summing the contribution of each motion segment, we will be able to account for the total range of motion of the upper cervical spine. We always need to keep in mind that the
occiput,
atlas, and
axis function as a unit whose individual movements are closely coupled one to another.
