Quinlan J F, Duke D, Eustace S
Cappagh National Orthopaedic Hospital, Finglas, Dublin 11, Republic of Ireland.
J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2006 Sep;88(9):1183-6. doi: 10.1302/0301-620X.88B9.17211.
Bertolotti's syndrome is characterised by anomalous enlargement of the transverse process(es) of the most caudal lumbar vertebra which may articulate or fuse with the sacrum or ilium and cause isolated L4/5 disc disease. We analysed the elective MR scans of the lumbosacral spine of 769 consecutive patients with low back pain taken between July 2003 and November 2004. Of these 568 showed disc degeneration. Bertolotti's syndrome was present in 35 patients with a mean age of 32.7 years (15 to 60). This was a younger age than that of patients with multiple disc degeneration, single-level disease and isolated disc degeneration at the L4/5 level (p </= 0.05). The overall incidence of Bertolotti's syndrome in our study was 4.6% (35 of 769). It was present in 11.4% (20 patients) of the under-30 age group. Our findings suggest that Bertolotti's syndrome must form part of a list of differential diagnoses in the investigation of low back pain in young people.
贝托洛蒂综合征的特征是最尾侧腰椎横突异常增大，其可能与骶骨或髂骨相连或融合，并导致孤立性L4/5椎间盘疾病。我们分析了2003年7月至2004年11月期间连续769例腰痛患者的腰骶部选择性磁共振扫描。其中568例显示椎间盘退变。35例患者存在贝托洛蒂综合征，平均年龄32.7岁（15至60岁）。这一年龄低于多节段椎间盘退变、单节段疾病以及L4/5节段孤立性椎间盘退变患者的年龄（p≤0.05）。在我们的研究中，贝托洛蒂综合征的总体发病率为4.6%（769例中的35例）。在30岁以下年龄组中占11.4%（20例患者）。我们的研究结果表明，在对年轻人腰痛进行调查时，贝托洛蒂综合征必须列入鉴别诊断清单。
