Abstract: Objective To summarize clinical characters and treatment methods of cervical spinal cord injuries in the elderly.Methods Fifty-nine elderly patients(age above 60 years old) with cervical spinal injury were retrospectively reviewed from the year of 2002 to 2006.Results Incidence rate of cervical spine injuries in the elderly was 8.2 % in our study.The most common type of injury was hyperextension injuries of cervical spine and cervical central cord syndrome.Traffic accident and falling injuries were the most common reasons.Early operation and early rehabilitation could improve the ASIA 1 or 2 grade,and effectively avoid complications of cord injury.Conclusion The key point of cervical spinal cord injuries in the elderly is how to get them to leave bed in earlier stages,so that the complications of cord injury can be reduced.Early operation and rehabilitation are good methods,thus the mortality rate decreased and quality of life increased.

Key words: cervical spinal injury, fracture, elderly, rehabilitation