Quantitative evaluation of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration by axial T2* mapping

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between vertebral endplate morphology and the degree of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Methods In total, 150 patients who met the inclusion criteria and were 20–60 years of age were retrospectively evaluated. Patients were evaluated for the presence of intervertebral disc degeneration or herniation, and the degree of degeneration was assessed at all lumbar levels. Vertebral endplate morphology was evaluated based on the endplate sagittal diameter, endplate sagittal concave angle (ECA), and endplate sagittal concave depth (ECD) on sagittal MRI. The association between intervertebral disc degeneration or herniation and endplate morphological measurements was analysed. Results In MRI, superior endplates ( ie, inferior endplates of the superior vertebra) were concave and inferior endplates ( ie, superior endplates of the inferior vertebra) were flat at all disc levels. A decrease in ECD and an increase in ECA were detected at all lumbar levels as disc degeneration increased ( P < .05). At the L4-L5 and L5-S1 levels, a decrease in ECD and an increase in ECA were detected in the group with herniated lumbar discs ( P < .05). There was no association between lumbar disc degeneration or herniation and endplate sagittal diameter at lumbar intervertebral levels ( P > .05). At all levels, ECD of women was significantly lesser than that of men and ECA of women was significantly greater than that of men ( P < .05). Conclusions There is an association between vertebral endplate morphology and lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration. Vertebral endplates at the degenerated disc level become flat; the severity of this flattening is correlated with the degree of disc degeneration.

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Neuroprotective effects of curcumin alleviate lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration through regulating the expression of iNOS, COX-2, TGF-β1/2, MMP-9 and BDNF in a rat model

Molecular Medicine Reports ◽

10.3892/mmr.2017.7464 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. 6864-6869 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Yuan Hu ◽

Jin-Shu Tang ◽

Shu-Xun Hou ◽

Xiu-Xiu Shi ◽

Jiang Qin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Intervertebral Disc ◽

Disc Degeneration ◽

Rat Model ◽

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ◽

Neuroprotective Effects ◽

Lumbar Intervertebral Disc ◽

Cox 2 ◽

Tgf Β1

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Expression of ANGPTL4 in Nucleus Pulposus Tissues Is Associated with Intervertebral Disc Degeneration

Disease Markers ◽

10.1155/2021/3532716 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Fan-jie Liu ◽

Liang-yu Xie ◽

Hua-zhong Li ◽

Sheng-nan Cao ◽

Yuan-zhen Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Intervertebral Disc ◽

Western Blot ◽

Nucleus Pulposus ◽

Disc Degeneration ◽

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ◽

Intervertebral Disc Herniation ◽

Lumbar Intervertebral Disc ◽

Real Time Quantitative Pcr ◽

Lumbar Intervertebral Disc Herniation ◽

Mrna And Protein Expression

Objective. Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4), encoding a glycosylated secreted protein, has been reported to be closely related to many kinds of diseases, including diabetes, tumor, and some musculoskeletal pathologies, such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and osteoporosis. The aim of the current study is to investigate the role of ANGPTL4 in intervertebral disc degeneration and analyze the association of ANGPTL4 expression with Pfirrmann grades. Methods. A total of 162 nucleus pulposus tissues were collected from lumbar intervertebral disc herniation patients undergoing interforaminal endoscopic surgery. Real-time quantitative PCR and western blot were performed to determine the mRNA and protein expression of ANGPTL4 in nucleus pulposus samples. Statistical analysis was performed to analyze the association of ANGPTL4 expression with Pfirrmann grades. Results. Based on the clinical data of 162 patients, results showed that Pfirrmann grades were significantly associated with patients’ age ( r = 0.162 , P = 0.047 ) and were not significantly associated with patients’ gender ( P > 0.05 ). RT-qPCR and western blot results showed that the mRNA ( r = 0.287 , P < 0.05 ) and protein ( r = 0.356 , P < 0.05 ) expressions of ANGPTL4 were both closely associated with Pfirrmann grades. The expression of ANGPTL4 was remarkably increased in the groups of high IVDD Pfirrmann grades. Conclusion. The results demonstrated that ANGPTL4 expression was positively associated with the Pfirrmann grades and the severity of intervertebral disc degeneration. ANGPTL4 may be served as a candidate biomarker for intervertebral disc degeneration.

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Microrna-199a upregulation mediates lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and is associated with clinical grades of degeneration

Turkish Neurosurgery ◽

10.5137/1019-5149.jtn.26650-19.3 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Majid Reza Farrokhi ◽

Mohammad Hossein Karimi ◽

Fariborz Ghaffarpasand ◽

Masih Sherafatian

Keyword(s):

Intervertebral Disc ◽

Disc Degeneration ◽

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ◽

Lumbar Intervertebral Disc

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Serum CXCL12/SDF-1 level is positively related with lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and clinical severity

Innate Immunity ◽

10.1177/1753425919895086 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (5) ◽

pp. 341-350

Author(s):

Zhao-Juan Er ◽

Chun-Fang Yin ◽

Wen-Jing Wang ◽

Xue-Jun Chen

Keyword(s):

Intervertebral Disc ◽

Disc Degeneration ◽

Roc Curve ◽

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ◽

Curve Analysis ◽

Clinical Severity ◽

Roc Curve Analysis ◽

Lumbar Intervertebral Disc ◽

Tnf Α ◽

Pfirrmann Grade

This study aimed to examine whether stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) or C-X-C chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12) participates in the development of lumbar disc degeneration, as implicated earlier by the level of CXCL12 correlating with this disease. It enrolled 145 patients with symptomatic lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) and 130 asymptomatic healthy controls with no indication of IDD. Radiological assessment of the IDD patients was targeted at the lumbar vertebra region, based on Pfirrmann grade. Degeneration of the multifidus and psoas major muscles was evaluated using Goutallier classification. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores were obtained for assessing the severity of manifestation. The levels of serum CXCL12, IL-6 and TNF-α were determined by ROC curve analysis, resulting in their prognostic value for Pfirrmann grading. Higher levels of serum CXCL12 were found in patients with IDD than in asymptomatic individuals, and were positively related to the Pfirrmann grade as well as multifidus muscle degeneration. Furthermore, serum CXCL12 concentration showed a significant correlation with the VAS and ODI scores. In addition, elevated serum CXCL12 levels were related to serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6. The ROC curve analysis implicated that CXCL12 could function as a biomarker of the early-mediate phase of IDD development. In summary, the serum CXCL12/SDF-1 level is positively related with lumbar IDD and its clinical severity.

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Feasibility of T2 Mapping and Magnetic Transfer Ratio for Diagnosis of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration at the Cervicothoracic Junction: A Pilot Study

BioMed Research International ◽

10.1155/2019/6396073 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2019 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Chao Zhang ◽

Yuan Lin ◽

Zhihua Han ◽

Liang Gao ◽

Ruipeng Guo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Relaxation Time ◽

Intervertebral Disc ◽

Disc Degeneration ◽

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ◽

T2 Mapping ◽

T2 Relaxation Time ◽

T2 Relaxation ◽

Cervicothoracic Junction ◽

Magnetic Transfer ◽

Pfirrmann Grade

Background. Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) at the cervicothoracic junction of spine is clinically relevant, however, little attention had been paid. T2 mapping and magnetic transfer ratio (MTR) are useful magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to quantitatively evaluate IDD, revealing the biochemical changes within the intervertebral disc. To compare T2 mapping with MTR imaging regarding their accuracy to quantitatively diagnose intervertebral disc degeneration at the cervicothoracic junction, influences of anatomical level, gender, age, and Pfirrmann grade of T2 relaxation time values and MTR values were evaluated. Methods. Sixty-seven patients with neck and upper back pain were included and examined with both T2 mapping and MTR imaging. The Pfirrmann grade, T2 relaxation time values, and MTR value of each disc between C7 and T3 were measured. Differences were investigated among different segmental levels, genders, age ranges, and Pfirrmann grades. The diagnostic accuracy of both MRI techniques was compared using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results. No significant difference was detected comparing T2 relaxation time values or MTR values among different anatomical levels, genders, and segmental levels. And we generally found that T2 relaxation time values decreased, while MTR value increased with increasing age. Importantly, we demonstrated the significant correlation between either T2 relaxation time values or MTR value and Pfirrmann grade. Conclusion. We proved the better accuracy of T2 mapping over MTR imaging to quantitatively evaluate the intervertebral disc degeneration of the cervicothoracic junction.

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