Document Detail


Incidental findings of the lumbar spine at MRI during herniated intervertebral disk disease evaluation.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  21512084     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
OBJECTIVE: The objective of our study was to evaluate the frequency and types of incidental findings of the lumbar spine during MR evaluation for herniated intervertebral disk disease.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 1268 patients (male-to-female ratio, 421:847; age range, 1-97 years) with clinically suspected herniated intervertebral disk disease underwent MRI of the lumbar spine. Musculoskeletal radiologists evaluated the MR examinations for the presence of incidental findings. We defined incidental finding as any abnormal finding not related to the chief complaint. Vertebral hemangioma, Tarlov cyst, fibrolipoma, synovial cyst, and sacral meningocele were included. Frequency distributions of the assessed imaging characteristics were calculated. For analysis of the relationship of incidental findings with patient characteristics, the chi-square test was used.
RESULTS: Overall, 107 patients (8.4%) had incidental findings. Fibrolipoma was most common (41 cases, 3.2%), followed by Tarlov cyst (27 cases, 2.1%) and vertebral hemangioma (19 cases, 1.5%). Fibrolipoma and sacral meningocele were more common in males (p < 0.05). There was no difference in the incidence between the sexes in the other incidental findings (p = 0.26-0.96). Four of the five incidental findings were significantly more frequent in individuals younger than 50 years (p < 0.05), whereas the incidence of vertebral hemangioma did not differ by patient age (p = 0.32).
CONCLUSION: Incidental findings at MRI of the lumbar spine were common and associated with age and sex. Most were benign findings. An awareness of the prevalence of the incidental findings detected at MRI of the lumbar spine is helpful for diagnosing lesions not related to symptoms.
Authors:
Hee-Jin Park; Yong-Hwan Jeon; Myung-Ho Rho; Eun-Ja Lee; Noh-Hyuck Park; Sung-Il Park; Joon-Hee Jo
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article    
Journal Detail:
Title:  AJR. American journal of roentgenology     Volume:  196     ISSN:  1546-3141     ISO Abbreviation:  AJR Am J Roentgenol     Publication Date:  2011 May 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2011-04-22     Completed Date:  2011-06-28     Revised Date:  2011-12-30    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  7708173     Medline TA:  AJR Am J Roentgenol     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  1151-5     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Radiology, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Pyung-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Adolescent
Adult
Age Factors
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Child
Child, Preschool
Cohort Studies
Female
Humans
Incidence
Incidental Findings*
Infant
Intervertebral Disc Displacement / complications*,  pathology*,  radiography
Lumbar Vertebrae*
Magnetic Resonance Imaging*
Male
Middle Aged
Retrospective Studies
Sex Factors
Spinal Neoplasms / epidemiology,  pathology*,  radiography
Young Adult
Comments/Corrections
Comment In:
AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2011 Dec;197(6):W1168; author reply W1169   [PMID:  22109339 ]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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