Vertebral fractures and concomitant fractures of the sternum.

From October 1996 to August 2001, 721 patients with vertebral fractures were admitted to our unit. Ten patients suffered from vertebral fractures and concomitant sternal fractures. The clinical notes and plain film radiographs of these patients were studied. The average age of the patients was 37 (20-69) years. Nine had been involved in road traffic accidents. Three patients had fractures of the cervical spine, six of the upper thoracic spine (T1-T6) and one had a lumbar spine fracture. The extra-thoracic fracture group included two patients with neurological compromise and two patients who were neurologically intact. The entire upper thoracic fracture group suffered neurological compromise, with four patients suffering complete neurological deficit. In addition, four of these patients suffered potentially life-threatening intra-thoracic injuries. The relative severity of the neurological compromise and the attendant injuries in the upper thoracic fracture group offers compelling evidence in support of the "fourth column" theory, as expressed by Berg [Berg EE (1993), The sternal-rib complex. A possible fourth column in thoracic spine fractures. Spine 18(13):1916-1919].