Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, Turgut Özal University, Malatya 44090, Turkey.
Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, Karabuk University, Karabuk 78200, Turkey.
Tomography. 2024 Apr 19;10(4):618-631. doi: 10.3390/tomography10040047.
Surgeons have limited knowledge of the lumbar intervertebral foramina. This study aimed to classify osteophytes in the lumbar intervertebral foramen and to determine their pathoanatomical characteristics, discuss their potential biomechanical effects, and contribute to developing surgical methods.
We conducted a retrospective, non-randomized, single-center study involving 1224 patients. The gender, age, and anatomical location of the osteophytes in the lumbar intervertebral foramina of the patients were recorded.
Two hundred and forty-nine (20.34%) patients had one or more osteophytes in their lumbar 4 and 5 foramina. Of the 4896 foramina, 337 (6.88%) contained different types of osteophytes. Moreover, four anatomical types of osteophytes were found: mixed osteophytes in 181 (3.69%) foramina, osteophytes from the lower endplate of the superior vertebrae in 91 (1.85%) foramina, osteophytes from the junction of the pedicle and lamina of the upper vertebrae in 39 foramina (0.79%), and osteophytes from the upper endplate of the lower vertebrae in 26 (0.53%) foramina. The L4 foramen contained a significantly higher number of osteophytes than the L5 foramen. Osteophyte development increased significantly with age, with no difference between males and females.
The findings show that osteophytic extrusions, which alter the natural anatomical structure of the lumbar intervertebral foramina, are common and can narrow the foramen.
外科医生对腰椎椎间孔的了解有限。本研究旨在对腰椎椎间孔内的骨赘进行分类，并确定其病理解剖学特征，探讨其潜在的生物力学影响，为手术方法的发展提供依据。
我们进行了一项回顾性、非随机、单中心研究，纳入了 1224 名患者。记录了患者腰椎椎间孔内骨赘的性别、年龄和解剖位置。
249 名（20.34%）患者的腰椎 4 、5 椎间孔有一个或多个骨赘。在 4896 个椎间孔中，有 337 个（6.88%）包含不同类型的骨赘。此外，还发现了四种解剖类型的骨赘：混合骨赘 181 个（3.69%），来自上位椎体下终板的骨赘 91 个（1.85%），来自上位椎体椎弓根和椎板交界处的骨赘 39 个（0.79%），以及来自下位椎体上终板的骨赘 26 个（0.53%）。L4 椎间孔内的骨赘数量明显多于 L5 椎间孔。骨赘的发生随年龄增长而显著增加，男女之间无差异。
研究结果表明，改变腰椎椎间孔自然解剖结构的骨赘外突较为常见，并可导致椎间孔狭窄。
