Imaging Findings

Question 1

What are the differentials for Vertebral Body Squaring?

Answer 1

Loss of concavity in the anterior body of spine.

• Ankylosing spondylitis (begins in the lumbar spine), precedes bamboo spine
• Paget’s disease of the bone
• Inflammatory arthritides (RA, Reiter’s. psoriatic arthritis, JIA)
• Down’s syndrome
• Congenital

Question 2

What does the Telescoping of fingers indicate?

Answer 2

• Rheumatoid arthritis - indicative of arthritis mutilans

Question 3

What is a syndesmophyte?

Answer 3

A bony growth originating INSIDE a ligament, commonly seen in the spine.
This can lead to intervertebral joints fusing in the vertebral.
These are pathologically similar to osteophytes