CAMEL COLLISION AS A MAJOR CAUSE OF LOW CERVICAL SPINAL-CORD INJURY

One hundred and forty patients with low cervical spinal cord injuries, who were admitted to the Riyadh Armed Forces Hospital over the past 1 0 years were reviewed. Motor vehicle accidents constituted 119 (85%) o f the patients. Camel collisions were a major cause of vehicle acciden ts 39 (33%), after rollover accidents 70 (59%), and much more than hea d on collisions 9 (7.5%). Male to female ratio was 14:1 with a mean ag e of 32 years. Camel collision although a commonly observed cause of m otor vehicle accidents in the Middle East has not been mentioned in th e literature before. The mechanism of injury is not much different, bu t the exact description of the accident and sustaining injury is inter esting because it leads to localised damage to the neck without major body trauma and mortality.