Yasuma T, Suzuki F, Koh S, Yamauchi Y
Department of Pathology, Koto Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
Acta Pathol Jpn. 1988 Jun;38(6):735-50. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1827.1988.tb02345.x.
Three hundred sixty-eight intervertebral discs (T11/12-L5/S1) were obtained at autopsy from 61 individuals (36 male, 25 female) ranging from 25 to 85 years of age, and subsequently examined histopathologically as sagittal-sectioned specimens with special reference to the cartilaginous plates. The numbers of cartilaginous foci found in fissured and ruptured regions of the plates were found to increase with age, and were considered to represent a restoration mechanism. Measurement of the cartilaginous plate/intervertebral disc antero-posterior length ratio showed a decrease with age in intervertebral discs from the same spinal level. Therefore, cartilage cell proliferation in the vertebral body rim was found following rupture of the outer layer of the annulus fibrosus and was thought to be one of the causes of spur formation in spondylosis deformans. When the changes in a cartilaginous plate with aging were accompanied by destructive processes of the vertebrae such as osteoporosis or metastatic cancer, an increase in the height of the disc, or ballooning, developed. On the other hand, when degeneration of the intervertebral disc increased and the nucleus pulposus collapsed, the height of the disc decreased. Thus, although the cartilaginous plate exhibits a restoration mechanism, degeneration with age progresses, resulting in various disc lesions.
从61名年龄在25岁至85岁之间的个体（36名男性，25名女性）尸检中获取了368个椎间盘（T11/12 - L5/S1），随后将其制成矢状切片标本进行组织病理学检查，特别关注软骨终板。发现软骨终板裂隙和破裂区域中的软骨病灶数量随年龄增加而增多，被认为代表一种修复机制。对软骨终板/椎间盘前后长度比的测量显示，同一脊柱节段的椎间盘该比值随年龄增长而降低。因此，在纤维环外层破裂后发现椎体边缘有软骨细胞增殖，这被认为是变形性脊柱炎中骨刺形成的原因之一。当软骨终板随年龄增长发生的变化伴有椎体的破坏过程，如骨质疏松或转移性癌症时，椎间盘高度会增加，即出现膨出。另一方面，当椎间盘退变加重且髓核塌陷时，椎间盘高度会降低。因此，尽管软骨终板具有修复机制，但随着年龄增长退变仍会进展，导致各种椎间盘病变。
