Spine Flashcards
Remind yourself of the structure of the roots of spinal nerves
Remind yourself of the structure of intervertbral discs
- Annulus fibrosis= shock absorber of spine. Made of annular bands of collagen in varying orientations. Avascular & aneural.
- Nucleus pulposus= remnant of notochord. Gelatinous and consists of type 2 collagen. Gradually decreases in height during day as water is squeezed out due to mechanical pressure. Also decreases in height with age.
Remind yourself how to differentiate between the different vertebrate
Remind yourself of the myotomes
Remind yourself of the dermatomes
Remind yourself of the peripheral nerve distribution in the upper limb
Remind yourself of sensory distribution of nerves in lower limb
Define dermatome
Define myotome
- Dermatome= area of skin supplied by a single spinal nerve
- Myotome= group of muscles supplied be a single spinal nerve
Define radiculopathy
Conduction block in axons of spinal nerve or it its root; results in weakness (when impacts of motor neurones) and parasthesia or anaesthesia (when impacts on sensory neurones)
Define myelopathy
Myelopathy is neurological signs & symptoms due to pathology of the spinal cord
*NOTE: must be compressing spinal cord e.g. therefore not cauda equina
Define radicular pain
Radicular pain= pain deriving from damage or irritation of the spinal nerve tissue- particularly dorsal root ganglion
*NOTE: different from radiculopathy wich can be thought of as a state of neurologial loss and may or may not be associated with radicular pain
What scale is used for neurologic classification of spinal cord injury?
ASIA impairment scale (American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale). Divides spinal cord injuries into 5 categories:
- Complete
- Incomplete sensory
- Incomplete motor (muscle grade below 3)
- Incomplete motor (muscle grade 3 or above)
- Normal
State some potential causes of radiculopathy
Most commonly a result of nerve compression which can be due to:
- Intervertebral disc prolapse (lumbar spine most common)
- Degenerative diseases of spine which lead to neuroforaminal or spinal canal stenosis (cervical spine most common as it is most mobile)
- Fracture (trauma or pathological)
- Malignancy (most commonly metastatic)
- Infection (e.g. extradural abscesses, osteomyelitis, herpes zoster)
Describe clinical features of radiculopathy
- Sensory features: parasthesia, numbness
- Motor features: weakness
- Radicular pain (deep, burning, strap like pain. Can be intermittent)
- Red flag symptoms
State the red flags for:
- Cauda equina
- Infection
- Fracture
- Malignancy/metastatic disease
Cauda Equina
- Bilateral sciatica
- Neurological deficit of legs e.g. motor weakness
- Saddle anaesthesia
- Painless urinary retention
- Erectile dysfunction
- Faecal & urinary incontinence
Infection
- Immunsupression
- IV drug use
- Unexplained fever
- Diabetes
- TB or recent UTI
Fracture
- Significant trauma
- Osteoporosis or metabolic bone disease
- Chronic steroid use (oral steroids =/3 months)
Malignancy/metastatic disease
- History of malignancy
- New onset over 50yrs
- Night pain that disturbs sleep (suggest pain not mechanical/not due to axial loading as pain occuring when supine and spine is not loaded)
*NOTE: be concerned about age <18yrs and >55yrs. Be concerned about thoracic pain as thoracic spine is least mobile so unlikely to be mechanical.
What must you ensure you examine in anyone presenting with symptoms of radiculopathy
- Pin prick sensations all dermatomes
- Motor function (Oxford muscle grading)
- Assess pin prick sensaton in perianal dermatomes (reduced in CES)
- Anocutaneous reflex (diminished or absent in CES)
- Anal tone (reduced in CES)
- Catheter tug (if catheter in situ. Tug catheter and ask pt if they can feel it. Reduced or absent in CES)
- Bladder scan (pre- and post-void. If 200mL or moer= retention)
- Consdier rectal pressure sensation
What is the anocutaenous reflex/how do you assess it?
anocutaneous reflex is assessed by means of stimulation with pinprick in the perianal region, which leads to visible reflexive anal contraction
How do you assess anal tone?
Ask pt to squeeze anus whilst doing DRE and assess for tone. Can also ask to cough and anal tone should increase.
State some differential diagnosis for radicular pain
Differential diagnoses inlcude pseudoradicular pain syndromes (conditions that do not arise due to nerve root dysfunction but cause radiating limb pain in an radicular pattern):
- Referred pain
- Myofascial pain
- Thoracic outlet syndrome
- Greater trochanter bursitis
- Iliotibial band syndrome
- Meralgia parasthetica
- Piriformis syndrome
What is myofascial pain?
- Hip muscles can mimic pain from lumbar radiculopathy
- Shoulder girdle muscles can produce pain radiating to upper extremity
- Examine for tenderness at specific muscle sites which when palpated produce radiating pain
What is meralgia parasethetica?
- Compression of lateral femoral cutaenous nerve of thigh as it passes under inguinal ligament.
- Presents with clearly demarcated area of parasthesia and/or numbness in anterolateral aspect of thigh
Discuss the general principles of the management of radiculopathy
- Depends on underlying cause.
- Main one to identify quickly/rule out is CES as it requires emergency surgical treatment.
What age group is cauda equina syndrome common in?
- 30-50yrs
What is the commonest cause of CES?
slipped disc that fills the spinal canal (2% of all disc prolapses we see)
What is the management of CES?
Emergency surgical decompression within 24-48hrs of onset of sphincter symptoms thorugh laminectomy or discectomy
State some potential complications of cauda equina (and suggest how we can help pts to manage these complications)
- Motor weakness dependent on which nerves affected- not necesarily paralysis! E.g. if L4/L5: L3 and L4 intact
- Bladder & bowel incontinence (Can’t feel bladder filling so get pt to intermittently self-catheterise to empty bladder. Or indwelling suprapubic catheter. Empty bowels by clock, colonic lavage, colostomy)
- Sexual dysfunction
Discuss the symptomatic management of radiculopathy
- Analgesia- in particular neuorpathic pain medications e.g.
- Amitriptyline
- Pregabalin
- Gabapentin
- Medication for muscle spasms e.g.
- Benzodiazepines
- Baclofen
- Physiotherapy
What is meant by degenerative disc disease?
Natural deterioration of intervertebral disc structure in which disc becomes progressively weak and begins to collapse. Many remain asymptomatic but some develop pain & further complications
State some risk factors for degenerative disc disease
- Age
- Progressive dehydration of nucleus pulposus
- Daily activities tear annulus fibrosis
- History of injury or pathology
- Spinal fractures
- Iatrogenic injuries
Outline the three stages of degenerative disc disease
- Dysfunction: outer annulus tears, separation of end plate, cartilage destruction, facet synovial reaction. Unlikely to feel pain at this stage; maybe some discomfort and changes to posture
- Instability: disc resorption and loss of disc space height, facet capsular laxity which can lead to subluxation and spondylolisthesis. Experience aches, pains & fatigue.
- Restabilisation: degenerative changes lead to osteophyte formation & spinal canal stenosis. Pain due to compression of nerve roots. Fatigued.
Describe clinical features of disc degeneration
Symptoms depend on region & severity of disease.
- Early stages: symptoms often localised and have unremarkable clincial exmaination. May have local spine tenderness, contracted paraspinal muscles, hypomobility, painful extension of the back or neck.
- Late stages: increasing pain- may have radicular pain and parasthesia also. Pain reproduced by passively raising extended leg (Lasegue sign). Worsenign muscle tenderness, stiffness, decreased ROM, scoliosis
What test can be done to assess for radicular pain caused by disc herniation?
- Lasègue test (straight leg raise test)
- To determine whether a patient with low back pain has an underlying herniated disk, often located at L5 (fifth lumbar spinal nerve).
How to perform:
- Pt lying supine
- Lift leg whilst knee is extended (ankle can be dorsiflexed for fruther assessment)
- Positive sign when leg raising +/- dorsiflexion causes pain (between 30-70 degrees)