Abstract:

Objective: Low back pain is a very common public health problem. Lumbar degeneration, facet degeneration and facet tropism, which are common problems that can cause lower back pain, are the most common causes of lower back pain. In this study, we examined the relationship between these pathologies. Materials and Methods: A total of 240 patients were included in our prospectively planned study. Age, gender, height, weight, smoking history and duration, duration of pain and visual analog scale (VAS) of the patients were recorded. Intervebral disc degeneration, facet degeneration and facet tropism at three lumbar levels (L3-4, L4-5, L5-S1) were evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography. Intervertebral disc degeneration, according to the modified Pfirrmann Grading System; facet joint degeneration was evaluated according to the Weishaup rating. Facet joint asymmetry/tropism was defined as ≥7° difference between left and right facet joint angles. Results: Of 240 patients, 129 (58%) were male and 111 (42%) were female. Their average height was 166.5 and their weight was 77.7. Mean pain duration was 20.4 months and VAS value was 7.67. A statistically significant (p<0.001) relationship was found between lumbar degeneration and facet degeneration at L3-4 and L4-5 levels. A highly significant (p<0.001) relationship was found between facet tropism and facet degeneration at the L4-5 level. A statistically significant relationship was found between age and lumbar degeneration and facet degeneration at all levels (p<0.001). A statistically significant correlation was found between age and facet tropism at L4-5 and L5-S1 levels (p<0.001). A statistically significant correlation was found with Facet tropism at L3-4 level, weight (p=0.001) and length of pain duration (p=0.002). A statistically significant correlation was found between facet asymmetry at L4-5 level and weight (p=0.007). Conclusion: Usually, we found that lumbar degeneration and facet degeneration are related to each other and this increases with age. We determined that facet tropism had no significant effect on the other pathologies.

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