The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society
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During the last 120 years, several mechanisms to protect the spinal nerve against traction have been described. All the described structures were located inside the spinal canal proximal to the intervertebral foramen. Ligaments with a comparable function just outside the intervertebral foramen are mentioned ephemerally. No studies are available about ligamentous attachments of cervical spinal nerves to adjacent vertebrae. ⋯ At the cervical level, direct ligamentous connections exist between extraforaminal cervical spinal nerves and nearby structures. They may serve as a protective mechanism against traction. In addition, these ligaments play an important role in the positioning of the nerves in the intervertebral foramen.