THE AMERICAN radiological literature and standard textbooks make few references to tetanus as a cause of spinal fractures, a condition first described in 1907 (1). The radiologist familiar with this entity may be the first to suspect its presence on a chest film taken during the acute illness when the fractures are usually asymptomatic (2–5). Patients presenting after the acute illness with back pain, or those in whom the fractures are incidentally discovered, may be spared unnecessary and expensive diagnostic tests if the correct diagnosis is suspected and confirmed with a clinical history of tetanus. It is the purpose of this communication to review the radiographic features of spinal fractures due to muscle spasm in tetanus, to discuss the mechanism of injury, and to briefly consider the differential diagnosis. Material The findings presented are drawn from the author's experience and that of his colleagues at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria, where approximately 200 acute cases of teta...