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intervertebral foramina of the side positioned further from the image receptor should be demonstrated open.patient’s head should be in a lateral position to prevent mandibular superimposition over the vertebral bodies of the cervical spine.all of the cervical spine should be included from C1-T1.
![oblique cervical spine x ray anatomy oblique cervical spine x ray anatomy](https://www.nih.gov/sites/default/files/news-events/research-matters/2012/20120423-bone.jpg)
inferiorly to include to at least T1 (EAM to sternal notch).superiorly to include all of C1/base of skull.anteriorly to include the soft tissue of the neck.laterally to include the entire cervical spine and its spinous processes.C4 at or just above the level of the hyoid bone.the face is in a lateral position with the interpupillary line perpendicular to the image receptor.the thorax and cervical spine is at 45° to the image receptor.patient is standing erect with either the left or right posterior side closer to the image receptor.Moving the patient's head or neck, or removing a cervical collar could be detrimental. Note: Such views should not be performed on trauma patients without the strict instructions of a qualified clinician who has reviewed the lateral cervical spine image or CT of the cervical spine. This projection can be used to visualize pathology involving the adjacent soft tissue structures or cervical spine, especially stenosis of the intervertebral foramina. However, the PA oblique projection is preferred as it reduces radiation dose to the thyroid compared to the AP oblique projection. The AP oblique cervical spine projections are supplementary views to the standard AP, odontoid and lateral images in the cervical spine series and are always done bilaterally for comparison purposes.