Neck pain secondary to radiculopathy of the fourth cervical root: An analysis of 12 surgically treated patients

Neck pain can originate from any number of factors. Perhaps the most diffic ult symptom complex to resolve is axial neck pain arising from upper cervic al nerve root compression. The purpose of this study is to report the resul ts of surgical intervention in a series of patients with neck pain from C4 radiculopathy. Twelve consecutive patients who were diagnosed with C4 radic ulopathy were retrospectively reviewed (follow-up, 22 +/- 16.3 months). Pat ients underwent either anterior cervical discectomy and fusion or posterior laminoforaminotomy at the C3-C4 segment. The results show that a good to e xcellent clinical result can be achieved in most patients (92% in our serie s). The importance of identifying patients with C4 radiculopathy lies in th e fact that surgery can alter the natural history of neck pain secondary to upper cervical root radiculopathy, unlike axial neck pain from degenerativ e disk disease.