PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - N. I. Chafetz
AU  - H. K. Genant
AU  - K. L. Moon
AU  - C. A. Helms
AU  - J. M. Morris
TI  - Recognition of Lumbar Disk Herniation with NMR
DP  - 1984 Jan 01
TA  - American Journal of Neuroradiology
PG  - 23--26
VI  - 5
IP  - 1
4099  - http://www.ajnr.org/content/5/1/23.short
4100  - http://www.ajnr.org/content/5/1/23.full
SO  - Am. J. Neuroradiol.1984 Jan 01; 5
AB  - Fifteen nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies of 14 patients with herniated lumbar intervertebral disks were performed on the UCSF NMR imager. Computed tomographic (CT) scans done on a GE CT/T 8800 or comparable scanner were available at the time of NMR scan interpretation. Of the 16 posterior disk ruptures seen at CT, 12 were recognized on NMR. Diminished nucleus pulposus signal intensity was present in all ruptured disks. In one patient, NMR scans before and after chymopapain injection showed retraction of the protruding part of the disk and loss of signal intensity after chemonucleolysis. Postoperative fibrosis demonstrated by CT in one patient and at surgery in another showed intermediate to high signal intensity on NMR, easily distinguishing it from nearby thecal sac and disk. While CT remains the method of choice for evaluation of the patient with suspected lumbar disk rupture, the results of this study suggest that NMR may play a role in evaluating this common clinical problem.