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Case Reports
. 2022 Aug 1;17(10):3678-3680.
doi: 10.1016/j.radcr.2022.07.018. eCollection 2022 Oct.

Discal cyst: a rare cause of low back pain and sciatica

Teresa Perillo  1 , Alessio Vitiello  2 , Marianna Perrotta  1 , Antonietta Serino  1 , Andrea Manto  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Discal cyst: a rare cause of low back pain and sciatica

Teresa Perillo et al. Radiol Case Rep. .

Abstract

We report a case of a 54-year-old man suffering from sciatalgia unresponsive to medical treatment. Imaging revealed a discal cyst the level L3-L4, a rare cause of low back pain, which has characteristic imaging features. In particular, on Magnetic Resonance Imaging it appears as a cystic formation with fluid content, which usually arises from the posterior contour of the intervertebral disc and it frequently has air bubbles within it. The patient underwent surgical treatment with resolution of symptoms.

Keywords: Computed tomography; Discal cyst; Magnetic resonance imaging; Neuroradiology; Sciatalgia; Spine.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Magnetic resonance (A–D) and computed tomography (E) of the lumbo-sacral spine show a Discal Cyst (arrows in A-E) in a 55-year-old male suffering from acute-onset drug-resistant low back pain and sciatica. Discal cyst appears as a well-demarcated formation in contact with intervertebral disc, hyperintense in T2 (A and D) and STIR (B) and hypointense in T1 (C). Air within the Discal Cyst (arrowheads in A-E) is a common associated finding.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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