Nonphysiologic hyperextension and lateral forces acting on the cervical spine and soft-tissue structures of the neck can result in a wide spectrum of injury patterns. Multiple factors (eg, patient age; the underlying morphologic features of the cervical spine; the magnitude, vector, and maximal focus of the force) all influence the observed patterns and the severity of injury. A review of the 5-year trauma database in two trauma centers revealed various injury patterns that were frequently recognized in patients with clinical evidence or historical documentation of a predominant hyperextension mechanism. Injuries included anterior arch avulsion and posterior arch compression fractures of the atlas, odontoid fractures, traumatic spondylolisthesis and teardrop fracture of C2, laminar and articular pillar fractures, and hyperextension dislocation injuries. More severe injuries were observed in patients with underlying predisposing conditions (eg, degenerative spondylosis, ankylosing spondylitis, diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis). Knowledge of the involved biomechanical factors provides a framework for understanding these injury patterns. Diagnostic imaging, especially computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, plays a fundamental role in the assessment of patients with suspected cervical injury. Furthermore, cross-sectional imaging facilitates the recognition of accompanying injuries to the face, the head, and the vascular structures of the neck.

Accurate characterization of adrenal lesions in lung cancer is essential in the staging of the disease. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging as well as fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) imaging are used to differentiate adrenal metastases from benign adenomas. Although FDG-PET is highly accurate in this regard, benign adrenal cortical adenomas have been shown to accumulate FDG, although to a lesser degree. We present a patient with a history of lung cancer and FDG accumulation in a benign adenoma, probably reflecting areas of chronic inflammation also seen within the gland at pathology.

The diagnosis of open globe injuries is often difficult to ascertain by physical examination and even with CT scans. MRI is used to evaluate a variety of globe pathologies and can also be used in certain patients with suspected injury of the globe. We report a case of traumatic globe injury, where MRI was utilized to accurately depict the presence and extent of open globe injury.

Purulent bacterial pericarditis is an uncommon form of infectious pericarditis, occurring usually in immunocompromised patients. It may rarely present as a nodular or tumefactive lesion, and in such cases is liable to be confused with primary and metastatic tumors. We describe the imaging features and diagnostic contribution of CT and MRI in a 68-year-old woman with mass-like purulent pericarditis.