HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Lakadamyali, H. Articles by Agildere, A. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Lakadamyali, H. Articles by Agildere, A. M. Social Bookmarking                      What's this? Hotlight (NEW!) What's Hotlight?

STIR Sequence for Depiction of Degenerative Changes in Posterior Stabilizing Elements in Patients with Lower Back Pain

Hatice Lakadamyali¹, Nefise Cagla Tarhan², Tarkan Ergun¹, Banu Cakr² and Ahmet Muhtesem Agldere²

¹ Department of Radiology, Baskent University, Alanya Research Center, Antalya, Turkey.
² Radiology Department, Baskent University School of Medicine, Fevzi Cakmak cad. 10. Sok, No 45 Bahcelievler 06490, Ankara, Turkey.

OBJECTIVE. The aims of this study were to investigate whether degenerative posterior paraspinal changes are a cause of lower back pain and to determine the age- and sex-related distribution of these changes on MR images acquired with a STIR sequence.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS. The lumbar MRI findings of 372 patients (141 men, 231 women; mean age, 51.2 years) with nonradicular lower back pain and of 249 healthy persons acting as controls (126 men, 123 women; mean age, 49.3 years) were analyzed. The sagittal STIR sequence was used for all MRI examinations. Presence of interspinous ligament edema, facet joint effusion, neocysts, paraspinal muscle edema, subcutaneous edema, disk herniation, and disk degeneration was evaluated, and the incidence of each finding was determined. All findings were grouped according to age and sex. Chi-square, Fisher's exact, and independent-samples Student's t tests and Spearman's rank correlation analysis were used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS. The incidences of facet joint effusion, interspinous ligament edema, neocyst formation, and paraspinal muscle edema were found to be statistically significantly higher in patients with lower back pain than in controls. The incidences of intervertebral disk degeneration, disk herniation, and subcutaneous edema in persons with and those without lower back pain were similar. Intervertebral disk degeneration, disk herniation, subcutaneous edema, and muscle edema were found to increase with age in both persons with and those without symptoms.

CONCLUSION. Degenerative changes in the posterior paraspinal structures were found in a higher percentage of subjects with lower back pain than in controls. Use of a STIR sequence with homogeneous fat suppression facilitates visualization of these changes.

Keywords: lower back pain • MRI • posterior paraspinal soft tissue • STIR sequence

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?