Wedging of vertebral bodies at the thoracolumbar spine in healthy individuals on whole body MRI screening: correlation with disc degeneration and disc herniation

Background There have been no reports on the relationship between wedging of vertebral bodies at the thoracolumbar spine and disc herniation in healthy individuals on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Purpose To investigate the degree of wedging of vertebral bodies at the thoracolumbar spine in healthy individuals who underwent whole-body (WB) MRI. We also assessed the correlation between wedging and adjacent disc pathology. Material and Methods This retrospective study comprised 200 healthy patients who underwent WB MRI as part of a regular health check from January 2019 to February 2019. We measured anterior and posterior vertical heights of each vertebral body between T10 and L2. The ratio of anterior height to posterior height (APR) was calculated, and we evaluated disc degeneration or disc herniation using WB MRI. Results The APR of T10 was significantly higher than at the other levels (P < 0.05), and the APR of L1 was significantly lower (P < 0.05). Men had a significantly smaller APR than women at T12 to L2 (P < 0.05). Regarding the relationship between APR and disc degeneration, the group without disc degeneration had a higher APR, with statistical significance at T12, L1, and L2. Regarding the relationship between APR and disc herniation, the group without disc herniation had a higher APR, with statistical significance at T11, T12, L1, and L2. Conclusion Wedging of vertebral bodies is most prominent at L1. Although the values were statistically significant only at some levels, the patients with disc degeneration or herniation had more prominent wedge deformity of thoracolumbar spine.