The term "Black Disc" refers to the phenomenon of a dark, and thus hypointense-appearing, intervertebral disc on the T2-weighted sequence in MRI.
Pathophysiology
Over the course of life, the nucleus of the intervertebral disc becomes dehydrated and loses water. On MRI, this disc appears black, hence the term "Black Disc." The causes of this process are genetic factors, metabolic changes, and external loading.
Imaging
On MRI imaging, a "Black Disc" appears with decreased signal on T2-weighted imaging[^1] [^2].
