Lumbar Disc Herniation

Last edit by Alaric Steinmetz on

Synonyms: LDH, Lumbale Diskushernie

A lumbar disc herniation is one of the most common neurosurgical conditions. It is a protrusion or sequestration of the intervertebral disc into the spinal canal or the neural foramen, which can lead to severe pain and neurological deficits due to nerve root compression.

Localization

Depending on their location on axial imaging, lumbar disc herniations are classified as central, subarticular, foraminal, and extraforaminal disc herniations.

Nomenclature of lumbar disc herniations
Nomenclature of lumbar disc herniations according to location, shown on an axial T2 MRI image.

Imaging

The gold standard for diagnosing lumbar disc herniations is MRI imaging.

Lumbar disc herniation on MRI
Lumbar disc herniation at the L5/S1 level on MRI.
Intraforaminal disc herniation on MRI
Axial T2 MRI image of a patient with a left-sided intraforaminal disc herniation at L3/4.
Lumbar disc herniation
Axial T2-weighted MRI image of a left-sided disc herniation at the L4/5 level.
Sagittal lumbar disc herniation
Sagittal T2-weighted MRI image of a patient with a lumbar disc herniation at the L4/5 level.

Article information

Article created by
Last edited:
on
Revision history
Show revision history (1)

1 edit by 1 author

Article created on · Alaric Steinmetz

Author list:
Newsletter