腰椎间盘MRI高信号区与腰痛相关性研究进展

Progressing study in the correlation between lumbar disc high-intensity zone on MRI and low back pain

据统计，一生中80％的人在一定时期内受到腰痛困扰。腰痛的年发病率为5％～20％，为个人和社会带来沉重经济负担。然而，90％慢性腰痛患者的具体原因不能明确。椎间盘源性疼痛是最常见的慢性腰痛，约占39％。椎间盘造影被认为是诊断椎间盘源性腰痛的金标准，但其可靠性仍受到质疑。此外，除存在假阳性、感染、神经损伤等问题，还会进一步加速椎间盘退变。因此，寻求一种无创的、精确的判断腰痛原因的方法，成为临床医生和科研工作者共同探索的课题之一。近年来，腰椎间盘MRI高信号区（high—intensityzone，HIZ）的研究引起广泛关注，为腰痛诊断带来极大帮助，同时也存在不少争议。现就其研究进展进行综述。

Low back pain is a common clinical symptom, severely affecting people＇s daily life. It is difficult to find out the exact cause of low back pain, so most patients with low back pain can＇t be clearly diagnosed. Intervertebral disc is the major source of low back pain, but there is no satisfactory method to determine the painful disc. Recently, the significance of lumbar disc high-intensity zone on MRI in the diagnosis of low back pain catches more and more researchers＇ attention. However, the essence and characteristics of high-intensity zone are uncertain. Although high-intensity zone is helpful for the determination of the internal disc disruption and painful disc, its reliability is disputed. This study reviewed previous literature on lumbar disc high-intensity zone on MRI, discussed the correlation between high-intensity zone and low back pain, stated the current problems and found out the future direction on this subject. With the progress of research and the development of imaging techniques, lumbar disc high- intensity zone on MRI may play an increasingly important role in the exact diagnosis of low back pain.