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Jan T. Wilmink

Lumbar Spinal Imaging in Radicular Pain and Related Conditions Understanding Diagnostic Images in a Clinical Context

Prof. Dr. Jan T. Wilmink University Hospital Maastricht Dept. Radiology 6202 AZ Maastricht Netherlands [email protected]

ISBN: 978-3-540-93829-3

e-ISBN: 978-3-540-93830-9

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-540-93830-9 Springer Heidelberg Dordrecht London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2009934492 © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Product liability: The publishers cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information about dosage and application contained in this book. In every individual case the user must check such information by consulting the relevant literature. Cover design: eStudio Calamar, Figueres/Berlin Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

Preface

Many years ago as a young neurologist I found myself, more or less by chance, with a temporary appointment in the neuroradiological staff of the University Hospital Groningen. As it turned out, this “temporary” excursion proved to be more permanent than I had anticipated, and some thirty years later, I look back on a career in neuroradiology, which has centred importantly on spinal imaging. An encounter of crucial importance for me was with Lourens Penning, then professor of neuroradiology and head of the department in Groningen. Lourens was a gifted and driven researcher and an accomplished illustrator, as well as being strongly interested in spinal morphometry and biomechanics. He imparted to me an understanding of the principles of spinal imaging, especially functional imaging, as well as of clinical research. Our co-operation was a fruitful one, as numerous joint references in this book attest. I have been privileged to experience an era of almost bewildering change in the field of medical imaging. At the time of my arrival on the scene in 1976, the mainstays of cerebral diagnosis were still pneumoencephalography, the notorious air study, together with cerebral angiography, with subsidiary roles for brain isotope scanning and echoencephalography. In the spine, diagnosticians still relied heavily on plain X-ray films, wit