title: Multiple vertebral osteonecrosis.
abstract: Vertebral osteonecrosis classically presents with an intravertebral vacuum cleft phenomenon or a fluid-filled cleft on MR images. These clefts are usually found in older patients presenting with more severe fractures, more significant collapse and instability. Therefore, although considered for a long time as pathognomonic for vertebral osteonecrosis, vertebral clefts are now considered to represent fracture non-union. The double-line sign is classically described for osteonecrosis of long bones, but has been reported in one case of concurrent spinal cord and vertebral bone marrow radionecrosis. We present a case of a histologically confirmed multilevel vertebral osteonecrosis manifesting as a double-line sign in the absence of an associated vertebral collapse and unrelated to radiotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Hôpital de Hautepierre, 67000 Strasbourg, France. rose-marie.javier@chru-strasbourg.fr
authors.forename: Rose-Marie
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Javier
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: Jean-Louis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Dietemann
authors.forename: Laetitia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sparsa
authors.forename: Shanti
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Natarajan-Ame
authors.forename: Marie-Pierrette
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Chenard
authors.forename: Jean-Louis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Kuntz
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010020:Osteonecrosis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*