Study of Lumbar MRI findings as to discal herniation and its clinical manifestations & demographic characteristics of the patients in Kurdistan MRI center, 2006

Low back pain (LBP) & lumbar radiculopathy are among the most common causes of referral to the clinics especially in persons between 20-50 years old. The most important cause of the LBP is discal herniation which can be diagnosed by means of MRI. Cultural and occupational differences together with different life styles in different areas influence the pattern and prevalence of the disease. Therefore, determination of the prevalence of the properly diagnosed cases in different time periods can be valuable and have a beneficial role in health care recommendations. This was a cross-sectional study which included all non-operated patients referring to Kurdistan MRI Center that had a lumbar MRI without contrast, in a period of 6 months between April 2006 and September 2006. Sampling method was census. All the MRIs were reported by the same physician and the locations and severity of discal herination were determined. Demographic data, chief complaint, and duration of the symptoms were recorded in a questionnaire for each of the patients. The data were analyzed by means of statistical tests. Of the 2210 Lumbar MRI, 1988 cases met the criteria for enrollment. 50.4% of the cases were women and the rest of them were men. The mean age of the patients was 41.69±13.85 years that most of them were between 36 to 45 years of age. The disease was more common in office workers and housewives. The most common herniation stages encountered, were bulging & protrusion of discs. The discal herniation prevalence was 7.87%. Generally 87.7% of the patients had some degree of herniation. The mean age of the patients with hernia was higher than those of the patients without this problem (p=0.000). Women compared to men had a higher mean age (p=0.000) & the severity of the hernia got worse by increasing age (p=0.000). MRI is a good modality for the assessment of the patients with LBP with doubtful diagnosis of discal hernia. The prevalence of the discal herniation is high in Kurdistan province. Adoption of policies toward public health care education to prevent verteberal column diseases seems to be necessary.