Degenerative spondylolysis: a concise report of scintigraphic observations.
OBJECTIVE
Spondylolysis is traditionally thought to be a diagnosis of adolescence and childhood, and is ascribed to mechanical stress through the immature pars interarticularis. Over the last 4 yr we have noted a presentation of spondylolysis in association with hypertrophic zygapophyseal joint disease in the lumbar spine in an older age group.


METHODS
Records of 94 patients presenting with low back pain were examined. A pattern of intense zygapophyseal joint uptake in association with extended uptake in the pars interarticularis was ascribed as degenerative spondylolysis.


RESULTS
The ages of the 94 cases ranged from 33 to 80 yr (mean 64 yr). There were 53 males and 41 females. In the group with degenerative spondylolysis the mean age was 72 yr, with four females and two males. None of these six patients gave a history of childhood spinal disease or back pain and all were relatively inactive in terms of current participation in sport. All cases of spondylolysis were confirmed by computed tomography scanning.


CONCLUSIONS
The finding of hypertrophic zygapophyseal joint disease in association with spondylolysis is easily recognized by scintigraphic tomographic imaging.
Van der Wall
H
H
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Concord Hospital, Hospital Road, Concord 2139, Australia. hansv@nmrf.org.au
Magee
M
M
Reiter
L
L
Frater
C J
CJ
Qurashi
S
S
Loneragan
R
R
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000209:etiology; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000150:complications; D013169:Spondylolysis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D021801:Zygapophyseal Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging