Radiological diagnostic technique selection in early cervical lateral stenosis

Abstract

The aim of the investigation was to reveal the most reliable radiodiagnostic technique to detect an early dystrophic process and develop an algorithm to diagnose cervical lateral stenosis using radiology. Materials and Methods. 80 case histories were studied by lateral stenosis imaging. We compared the radiographs and anatomical observations of the cervical spine (n=37). All patients underwent survey radiography (radiography of spine) in two orthogonal views (AP and lateral), as well as in the oblique view, multispiral computed tomography (MSCT) on a helix CT machine LightSpeed VCT with 64 sections available per roentgen tube rotation, as well as magnetic resonance tomography (MRT). Results. There have been defined the capabilities of radiodiagnosis and suggested the sequence of radiological methods used when examining patients with early cervical stenosis. MSCT with multiplanar and 3D reconstructions will be maximally informative in cervical lateral stenosis. The technique can be characterized as an informative one that can completely substitute radiological methods. Radiology in oblique views can be performed in patients with lateral stenosis in case MSCT is infeasible due to some reasons. MRT is required in case of marked neurological symptoms and differential diagnosis with acute hernias. An imaging algorithm of dystrophic impairments in early cervical lateral stenosis is the following: MSCT–radiography–MRT.