Systematic literature review of imaging features of spinal degeneration in asymptomatic populations.

ABSTRACT:

Background and purpose

Degenerative changes are commonly found in spine imaging but often occur in pain-free individuals as well as those with back pain. We sought to estimate the prevalence, by age, of common degenerative spine conditions by performing a systematic review studying the prevalence of spine degeneration on imaging in asymptomatic individuals.

Materials and methods

We performed a systematic review of articles reporting the prevalence of imaging findings (CT or MR imaging) in asymptomatic individuals from published English literature through April 2014. Two reviewers evaluated each manuscript. We selected age groupings by decade (20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 years), determining age-specific prevalence estimates. For each imaging finding, we fit a generalized linea

SUBMITTER: Brinjikji W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4464797 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature