Vertebral bone-marrow changes in degenerative lumbar disc disease. An MRI study of 74 patients with low back pain.
We carried out MRI studies of 74 patients with end-plate and vertebral bone-marrow changes associated with degenerative lumbar disc disease. Abnormalities were classified into type A, with decreased signal intensities, and type B, with increased signal intensities on T1-weighted spin-echo images. Twenty-seven (73%) of the 37 patients with type-A changes had low back pain, in contrast to only four (11%) of the 37 patients with type-B changes. Lateral flexion-extension radiographs showed hypermobility in 26 patients (70%) with type-A changes, and in only six (16%) with type-B changes. Type-A changes correlated with segmental hypermobility and low back pain, while type-B changes were more common in patients with stable degenerative disc disease.
Toyone
T
T
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, School of Medicine, Chiba University, Japan.
Takahashi
K
K
Kitahara
H
H
Yamagata
M
M
Murakami
M
M
Moriya
H
H
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011859:Radiography; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D013123:Spinal Fusion