ABSTRACT
The neck has a gentle curvature with an anterior convexity. The bony structure of the neck is the cervical spine with seven vertebrae, arranged in a lordotic configuration of 16 to 25 degrees. This physiologic lordosis is never quite reversed, even in flexion, unless under pathologic conditions. The Smith-Robinson-Cloward approach is the most widely used for anterior cervical surgery. The spine is accessed through a slightly oblique skin incision on the side of the neck (right or left) in front of the sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM). The clinical assessment symptoms of neck includes referred neck pain, radiating pain, chronic or recurrent neck pain, stiffness, numbness, tingling and weakness; headache, cervicogenic headache, and tension. Neurological examination of the upper limbs is mandatory in all cases. Unilateral or rarely bilateral arm pain is the main presentation symptom of cervical disc herniation, and it can be associated with variable degrees of neck pain and stiffness.
