Focal fatty deposits in spinal bone marrow

Case contributed by Hidayatullah Hamidi
Diagnosis certain

Presentation

Low back pain

Patient Data

Age: 70 years
Gender: Male

There are multiple T2 high signal foci within the vertebral bodies, which show loss of signal on fat-suppressed STIR sequence representing focal fatty replacement.

Mild posterior disc bulges are noted at L3/4 and / L4/5 levels causing indentation of thecal sac without radicular compression. Variable degrees of disc desiccation is noted along the lumbar spine.

Case Discussion

Focal fatty deposits in the vertebral bodies is a normal variant which can be confidently depicted with MRI while correlated with fat suppressed sequences (high signal on T1WI and T2WI with loss of signal when fat is suppressed).

How to use cases

You can use Radiopaedia cases in a variety of ways to help you learn and teach.

Creating your own cases is easy.