Ligamentum flavum hypertrophy

Last revised by Raymond Chieng on 23 Apr 2023

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Weerakkody Y, Chieng R, Vadera S, et al. Ligamentum flavum hypertrophy. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 25 Apr 2024) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-65416

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-65416

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/65416

rID:

65416

Article created:

8 Jan 2019, Yuranga Weerakkody ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Yuranga Weerakkody had no recorded disclosures.

View Yuranga Weerakkody's current disclosures

Last revised:

23 Apr 2023, Raymond Chieng ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Raymond Chieng had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.

View Raymond Chieng's current disclosures

Revisions:

6 times, by 5 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Systems:

Spine

Synonyms:

Hypertrophy of the ligamentum flavum
Ligamentum flavum thickening
Hypertrophied ligamentum flavum

Ligamentum flavum hypertrophy refers to abnormal thickening of the ligamentum flavum. If severe, it can be associated with spinal canal stenosis.

Pathology

It is thought to be mostly from fibrosis caused by the accumulation of mechanical stress with the aging process, especially along the dorsal aspect of the ligamentum flavum.

The thickness of the ligamentum flavum increases with age and this increase is thought to the most pronounced at the lower lumbar levels ³. Ligamentum flavum is considered thickened when it is more than 4 mm in lumbar spine ³ and more than 1.7 mm in cervical spine ⁷.