Ligaments of neck (overview)

The spine forms the central axis of the human body and is composed of bones called vertebrae, which are separated by fibrocartilaginous structures known as intervertebral discs. The cervical spine is the most proximal portion of the spine, consisting of seven cervical vertebrae.

All vertebrae are interconnected and held in place by various joints that allow for a wide variety of movements. The spine contains all types of joints - fibrous joints, cartilaginous joints, and synovial joints.

Fibrous joints connect bones using fibrous connective tissue. They allow slight movements and do not have joint cavities. There are two subdivisions of this joint type - sutures and syndesmoses. Fibrous joints found within the spine are classified as syndesmoses.

Syndesmoses connect two or more bones with the help of ligaments or membranes. The ligaments of the cervical spine include both - the ligaments that are present throughout most of the spine and extend into the cervical region and the ligaments that are exclusively found in the cervical part of the spine.

Ligaments present along most of the spine include the following:

Ligaments exclusively found in the neck are as follows:

The spine has several specific short ligaments located at the level of its connection with the skull. These ligaments are called the craniovertebral ligaments. They strengthen the three craniovertebral joints, which are situated between the first cervical vertebra (C1), the second cervical vertebra (C2), and the occipital bone of the skull. These ligaments include the cruciate ligament of the atlas, alar ligaments, apical ligament of the dens, tectorial membrane, anterior atlantooccipital membrane, anterior atlantoaxial membrane, posterior atlantooccipital membrane, and posterior atlantoaxial membrane.

 

Note: The intertransverse ligaments are fibrous bands that extend between the transverse processes of adjacent vertebrae. They run from the superior aspect of the transverse process below to the inferior aspect of the transverse process above. These ligaments are present along most of the spine. In the cervical region, the intertransverse ligaments are more like irregular, scattered fibers and are mostly replaced by the intertransversarii muscles. For this reason, we do not review these ligaments in the neck.

 

Facet joint capsules

Like other synovial joints in the body, the facet joints (zygapophyseal joints) of the vertebral column are reinforced by joint capsules or articular capsules - dense connective tissue structures that cover synovial joints and seal the joint spaces.

The facet joint capsules are particularly thin and loose. They attach to the margins of the articular facets on adjacent articular processes of vertebrae. Medially, these capsules fuse with the yellow ligaments.