Articles
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742 results found
Article
CT thoracic spine (protocol)
The CT thoracic spine or T-spine protocol serves as an examination for the assessment of the thoracic spine. As a separate examination, it is often performed as a non-contrast study. It might be combined or simultaneously acquired with a CT chest or CT chest-abdomen-pelvis as part of a trauma or...
Article
AO Spine classification of thoracolumbar injuries
The AO Spine classification of thoracolumbar injuries is a commonly used thoracolumbar spinal fracture classification system 1,2.
The AO Spine system (2013) supercedes the more complex and less reproducible AO Magerl classification 3. Unlike the other widely used system, the thoracolumbar injur...
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Magerl classification of thoracolumbar spinal fractures (historical)
The Magerl classification, one of many thoracolumbar spinal fracture classification systems, was adopted as the original AO classification in 1994 but has since then been superseded: see the AO Spine classification of thoracolumbar injuries.
Usage
Although the Magerl classification is based on...
Article
Cauda equina
The cauda equina is the collective term given to nerve roots distal to the conus medullaris, which occupy the lumbar cistern.
Its name comes from the Latin for "horse's tail".
The cauda equina is contained within the thecal sac and suspended in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The lower sacral (S2-...
Article
Facet joint arthropathy
Facet joint arthropathy/arthrosis is a common cause of low back pain and is most commonly due to osteoarthritis. It occurs from facet joint chondral loss, osteophyte formation and hypertrophy of the articular processes that may cause spinal canal stenosis in severe cases.
Facet joint arthropath...
Article
Lipomyelomeningocele
Lipomyelomeningoceles are one of the forms of closed spinal dysraphism. They usually present as a subcutaneous fatty mass just above the intergluteal cleft. However, some lipomyelomeningoceles may occur at other locations along the spinal canal.
Clinical presentation
Lipomyelomeningoceles may ...
Article
Gibbus deformity
A gibbus deformity is a short-segment structural thoracolumbar kyphosis resulting in sharp angulation.
Pathology
Aetiology
There are a number of causes which can be divided into congenital and acquired.
Congenital
achondroplasia
cretinism (congenital hypothyroidism)
Apert syndrome
Coffin...
Article
Occipital condyle fracture
Occipital condylar fractures are uncommon injuries usually resulting from high-energy blunt trauma. They are considered a specific type of basilar skull fracture, and importantly can be seen along with craniocervical dissociation.
Treatment of isolated injury is generally conservative, unless t...
Article
Chance fracture
Chance fractures also referred to as seatbelt fractures, are flexion-distraction type injuries of the spine that extend to involve all three spinal columns. These are unstable injuries and have a high association with intra-abdominal injuries.
Pathology
Mechanism
Chance fracture is also known...
Article
Alar ligament
The alar ligaments join the lateral margins of the sloping upper posterior margin of the dens of C2 to the lateral margins of the foramen magnum (adjacent to the occipital condyles) and lie on either side of the apical ligament. They may be oblique or vertical and are thickest at the occipital a...
Article
Longitudinally extensive spinal cord lesion
Longitudinally extensive spinal cord lesions (LESCL), also known as longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM), represent extensive involvement of the spinal cord, with abnormal T2 signal traversing at least three vertebral body segments in length.
Differential diagnosis
They is a bro...
Article
Vertebral body endplate
Vertebral body endplates are anatomically discrete structures that form the interface between the vertebral bodies and the adjacent intervertebral discs. They are constituted centrally by a cartilaginous layer and peripherally by a bone ring apophysis. The cartilaginous layer is related to the n...
Article
Compressive myelopathy
Compressive myelopathy refers to neurological deficits that result from compression of the spinal cord. It most commonly occurs in the cervical spinal cord.
Pathology
Any cause of spinal canal stenosis including cervical spondylosis (endplate changes, disc herniation, osteophytes, facet joint...
Article
Owl-eyes sign (spinal cord)
The owl-eyes sign, also known as snake-eyes sign or fried-eggs sign, represents bilaterally symmetric circular to ovoid foci of high T2-weighted signals in the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord and is seen on axial MR imaging. The sagittal corollary is a "pencil-like" vertical linear high T...
Article
Spondylolysis
Spondylolysis, commonly known as pars interarticularis defect or pars defect, is a defect in the pars interarticularis, the portion of the vertebral neural arch that connects the superior and inferior articular facets.
Epidemiology
Spondylolysis is present in ~5% of the population 2 and higher...
Article
Spontaneous intracranial hypotension
Intracranial hypotension, also known as craniospinal hypotension is a clinical entity that results from a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak that almost without exception occurs from the spine, either into the epidural space or directly into veins in the setting of CSF-venous fistulas. It usually, b...
Article
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (commonly abbreviated to TB, short for tubercle bacillus) encompasses an enormously wide disease spectrum affecting multiple organs and body systems predominantly caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. A small proportion can also be caused by Mycobacterium bovis through drinking unpa...
Article
Spondylolisthesis
Spondylolisthesis (plural: spondylolistheses) denotes the slippage of one vertebra relative to the one below.
Terminology
Although etymologically, it is directionless (see below) and could be applied to both anterolisthesis and retrolisthesis, in practice, spondylolisthesis is used synonymous...
Article
Arachnoid cyst
Arachnoid cysts are relatively common benign and asymptomatic lesions occurring in association with the central nervous system, both within the intracranial compartment (most common) as well as within the spinal canal. They are usually located within the subarachnoid space and contain CSF.
On ...
Article
Cauda equina syndrome
Cauda equina syndrome is considered an incomplete cord syndrome, even though it occurs below the conus. Cauda equina syndrome refers to a collection of symptoms and signs that result from severe compression of the descending lumbar and sacral nerve roots. It is most commonly caused by an acutely...
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