Translating your MRI/x-ray report
Degeneration: a.k.a. wear + tear/arthritis/normal age-related changes
Dehydrated discs: a normal part of ageing where the discs loose height as they loose fluid
Disc bulge/protrusion/extrusion/sequestration: the stages of disc damage where part of the disc begins to bulge outwards, sometimes pressing on nerves. A bulge is the 1st stage, getting more severe up to extrusion, until we reach sequestration - meaning that the disc tissue has broken away completely
Abutting: touching but not compressing (often used when talking about discs and nerves)
Stenosis: the narrowing of a bony canal - often happens as part of normal degeneration, however if the narrowing gets too severe, then it can compress nerves causing pain and other issues
Osteophytes: bony growths - you might have heard them being referred to as “bone spurs”. They are often an incidental finding, and don’t always cause pain
Schmorl’s nodes: a type of disc herniation, where the disc material presses into the adjacent vertebra. These don’t usually cause any symptoms
Lesion: a vague term meaning an area of damage
Calcification: an area where the body has deposited extra calcium where you wouldn’t normally see it - e.g. ligament
High/low signal: the shades of grey seen on an MRI with high signal = white, low signal = black. Depending on what type of MRI scan we’re looking at, different structures will appear at different intensities. In a T2 scan, fat appears as white, while in a T2 fat & water appear white. On a STIR scan, fat is dark (low signal), while fluid is bright (high signal). Looking at the same area in multiple ways helps to tell us more about what a lesion could be - e.g. inflammation, scar tissue, tumour, etc
Anything else you’d like translated? Let us know!