Fluoroscopic Findings of Extra-Cervical Facet Joint Flow and Its Incidence on Cervical Facet Joint Arthrograms

Abstract

Cervical facet joint (CFJ) syndrome is a common cause of neck pain. For its diagnosis and treatment, CFJ injection with arthrogram is generally performed. This study aimed to investigate the frequency of extra-CFJ flow on CFJ arthrograms during injections and its differences according to age, sex, and cervical vertebral level. We analyzed 760 CFJ arthrograms administrated to 208 patients diagnosed with CFJ syndrome. Arthrograms at each vertebral level were collected to evaluate the normal CFJ and extra-CFJ flow. The primary and secondary outcomes were frequency of extra-CFJ flow according to cervical vertebral level, age, and sex and according to pairwise cervical levels, respectively. Extra-CFJ flow at the cervical spine occurred during 179 injections, and the overall incidence was 3.3–36.2% at different cervical levels. The incidence of extra-CFJ flow at each cervical vertebral level according to age and sex was not significant. Extra-CFJ flow was the highest at C6 and C7, but there was no statistical significance. Extra-CFJ flow was higher at lower vertebral levels (C5–C7) than at upper levels (C3 and C4). Additional clinical studies and anatomical evaluations are needed to support its clinical value and enable the development of new injection techniques.