The clinical value of MRI in quantitative analysis of redundant nerve roots

Objective: To investigate the clinical value of MRI in the quantitative analysis of redundant nerve roots (RNR) in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. Methods: All of 275 patients (male n = 103, female n = 172, age range 18 ∼ 81 years old, mean age 60.50 ± 8.84 years old) with lumbar spinal stenosis were collected. According to the existence of RNR, the patients were divided into RNR and non-RNR groups, there were 122 cases in the RNR group (male n = 48, female n = 74, mean age 63.16 ± 7.76 years old) and 153 cases in the non-RNR group (male n = 55, female n = 98, mean age 58.39 ± 9.09 years old). Each patient underwent lumbar MRI with conventional MRI sequences (sagittal T1_WI, T₂WI, and transverse T₂WI). The cross-sectional area of dural sac (CSA) and relative length of RNR were measured. The JOA (Japanese Orthopedic Association) and ODI (Oswestry Disability Index) scores were calculated. Chi-square test was used to compare the gender between the two groups, independent sample t-test was used to compare age, CSA and clinical scores, and Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between the relative length of RNR and lumbar clinical scores, course of disease, age and CSA. Results: There was no significant difference in gender between the RNR group and non-RNR group (P > 0.05). Compared with the non-RNR group, the average age of patients in the RNR group was older, CSA was smaller, JOA score was lower, and ODI score was higher (all P < 0.05). The incidence of RNR was 44.36% (122/275). The relative length of RNR in the RNR group was 4.35 ± 1.41, which was negatively correlated with the lumbar JOA score (r = -0.678, P < 0.001), positively correlated with the lumbar ODI score (r = 0.626, P < 0.001) and course of disease (r_s = 0.276, P = 0.002), but not correlated with the age and CSA (all P > 0.05). Conclusion: MRI can provide imaging support for clinical diagnosis, treatment and prognosis, which has a high clinical significance. (authors)