Upper Cervical Injury: The Real Kryptonite that Brought Superman Down

Written by Dr. Brandon Harshe

superman, christopher reeve May 27th, 1995 marks the day Christopher Reeve was involved in an equestrian accident that paralyzed him permanently from the shoulders down.

Reeve was competing in an equestrian contest when his horse came to a sudden stop. He was thrown head first off the horse and landed on his head, perpendicular to the ground. The force of his 6′4″, 230 lb body hitting the ground was such a traumatic blow that it completely shattered the top two vertebrae in his upper cervical spine, the atlas and axis, or C1 and C2.

An MRI later revealed a fluid filled cyst within his spinal cord at the level of C2. This cyst represented dying cells at the center of the spinal cord.

Because of this injury, Reeve was not capable of breathing on his own without a ventilator.

With such a traumatic injury at the brain stem level, an area that controls breathing, heart rate, and many other vital organ functions, is it any wonder Christopher Reeve had no control over his body whatsoever?

What do you think would happen if you had just a small injury to the upper cervical area? Would it be possible for a small misalignment of the atlas to cause an overall physiological dysfunction and imbalance, resulting in a vertebral subluxation?

If the answer is yes, find an Upper Cervical Chiropractor near you and get the help you need.