ArticleEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2025
Feasibility study for evaluating cervical intervertebral disc degeneration using axial diffusion tensor imaging.
Article in European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Gut-Intervertebral Disc Axis: Gut Microbiome-Driven Immune-Metabolic Imbalance and Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.Journal of cellular physiology · 2026Review
- Comparison of the predictive value of mri-based cervical endplate bone quality (C-EBQ) score and cervical vertebral bone quality (C-VBQ) score for the progression of cervical disc degeneration.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2026Article
- Integrated nanoindentation-Raman spectroscopy reveals microscale biomechanical and molecular biomarkers of early intervertebral disc degeneration in a rat model.Materials today. Bio · 2025Article
- Review
- Current and future advances in practice: cervical spondylosis and mechanical neck pain.Rheumatology advances in practice · 2025Review
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIntervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is the main cause of neck pain. Although conventional magnetic resonance imaging can detect morphological changes in intervertebral disc degeneration, it cannot provide accurate and objective evaluations. Magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) reflects the microstructural changes in tissues by describing the diffusion of water molecules. It was initially applied to the evaluation of lumbar disc degeneration; however, no study has used DTI to evaluate cervical disc degeneration.
objectiveTo conduct a prospective study to evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of DTI in quantifying cervical disc degeneration by correlating the main parameters of axial DTI of intervertebral discs, namely fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values, using the Pfirrmann grade.
methodsThe cervical discs of 30 symptomatic volunteers with neck pain and 20 asymptomatic volunteers were assessed using a 3.0 T magnetic resonance scanner. We evaluated intervertebral discs from C3/4 to C6/7 in each volunteer. The Pfirrmann grades, FA value, and MD value on the conventional magnetic resonance imaging were evaluated. The Kruskal-Wallis test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used to compare the FA and MD values of subjects with different degeneration levels.
resultsStatistical analysis showed that the FA value of the nucleus pulposus in patients group was significantly higher than that in the asymptomatic volunteers, and the MD value of the nucleus pulposus was significantly lower than that in the asymptomatic volunteers, and the difference was significant (P < 0.05). In the study group, with an increase in cervical intervertebral disc grade, the FA value of the nucleus pulposus also showed a gradual upward trend, and this difference was significant (P < 0.05). The MD value of the nucleus pulposus showed a gradual downward trend, except between grades I and II, which indicates that the axial FA value can better show the early pathological changes of the cervical intervertebral disc.
conclusionsThe FA and MD values of the cervical intervertebral disc can quantitatively evaluate the degree of degeneration of the cervical intervertebral disc; axial DTI imaging technology can provide a good theoretical basis for the imaging diagnosis of cervical intervertebral disc degeneration and has important clinical application value.
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