title: Butterfly vertebra with lumbar intervertebral disc herniation.
abstract: A butterfly vertebra is a rare congenital anomaly that is usually asymptomatic. The authors, however, describe a novel case involving a butterfly vertebra overlapping with disc herniation that presented as radiculopathy. A butterfly vertebra is characterized by a symmetrical fusion defect resulting in a sagittal cleft vertebra. Only a few cases of butterfly vertebrae have been reported as incidental findings. This spinal anomaly may be associated with other congenital conditions such as Pfeiffer, Crouzon, Jarcho-Levin, and Alagille syndromes. Moreover, there is no previous report of a case associated with symptomatic disc herniation from the sagittal cleft.   The authors excised the herniated disc fragment. They performed intraoperative discography after exposure of the corresponding intervertebral space via a conventional interlaminar approach. Histological examination of a tissue specimen showed scattered chondrocytes in the myxohyaline stroma, which indicated the nucleus pulposus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Dongrae Wooridul Spine Hospital, Busan, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyung-Lea
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Jin-Sung
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sung Suk
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Paeng
authors.forename: Sang-Ho
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D017586:Diskectomy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007405:Intervertebral Disc Displacement / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D007796:Laminectomy; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D011843:Radiculopathy / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D011859:Radiography; D012585:Sciatica / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D016896:Treatment Outcome