New treatments and imaging strategies in degenerative disease of the intervertebral disks.

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in patients with persistent low back pain and sciatica effectively demonstrates spine anatomy and the relationship of nerve roots and intervertebral disks. Except in cases with nerve root compression, disk extrusion, or central stenosis, conventional anatomic MR images do not help distinguish effectively between painful and nonpainful degenerating disks. Hypoxia, inflammation, innervation, accelerated catabolism, and reduced water and glycosaminoglycan content characterize degenerated disks, the extent of which may distinguish nonpainful from painful ones.

T2 relaxation times of intervertebral disc tissue correlated with water content and proteoglycan content.

Study Design: Human and bovine cadaver study in which biochemical measurements and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of intervertebral discs were correlated.

Objective: To measure the correlations between T2 relaxation time with water and proteoglycan (PG) content of intervertebral discs.

Summary Of Background Data: Measuring T2 relaxation times may provide an accurate noninvasive method of detecting changes in disc water content and biochemistry due to aging or degeneration.