Acute Schmorl Node in Dorsal Spine: An Unusual Cause of a Sudden Onset of Severe Back Pain in a Young Female
A 23-year-old, otherwise healthy Caucasian woman was admitted to a spine outpatient clinic with severe symptoms of acute localized back pain, which had appeared suddenly the previous night. The patient had no previous history of back pain, nor history of significant compression/flexion stress to the spine, including any kind of trauma. She denied paraesthesias, numbness, or weakness. All clinical findings were normal apart from restriction of back motion due to intense back pain. No neurological abnormalities were noted, and routine laboratory results were found to be normal. Furthermore, plain film of the lumbar spine showed no abnormalities.\nDue to its sudden appearance and the severity of the symptoms, further imaging studies were performed. Sagittal T2-weighted MRI showed an impressive Schmorl node in the T11 vertebral body (, arrow) surrounded by a marked bone marrow oedema of the whole vertetebra body. Diffused, homogeneous, low signal intensity on sagittal T1-weighted images (, arrow), diffused enhancement of both Schmorl node and vertebra is noted on T1-weighted with fat saturation (). The patient was treated conservatively by bed rest and analgesic medications. Two weeks later the patient was symptom-free. A routine follow-up revealed no residual abnormalities, and the patient continues to enjoy good health.