Cartilaginous Endplates of the Spine: MRI with Anatomic Correlation in Cadavers

PURPOSE: The purpose of this work was to describe the MR appearance of cartilaginous endplates (CEPs) with close anatomic correlation in cadavers derived from elderly subjects. METHOD: High-resolution MRI was performed on five cadaveric lumbar spines, and a total of 48 CEPs were studied with T1-weighted spin echo, T2-weighted fast spin echo, and fat-suppressed 3D spoiled GRASS gradient echo (SPGR) MR images. All specimens underwent anatomic sectioning, and gross anatomic findings were correlated with those of MRI. RESULTS: Conventional MR images allowed gross morphologic evaluation of the integrity of the CEPs and demonstrated cartilaginous nodes. In all specimens, fat-suppressed 3D-SPGR images invariably improved visualization of the fine anatomic structures at the diskovertebral junction (p < 0.01). Various morphologic abnormalities of the CEPs demonstrated on MR images, including thinning, irregularity, erosions, cartilaginous defects, and Schmorl nodes, were confirmed on anatomic inspection. CONCLUSION: Results in our study indicate that MRI may delineate the normal anatomy of CEPs and demonstrate morphologic changes occurring at the diskovertebral junction. Dedicated high-resolution technique and fat-suppressed 3D-SPGR images may significantly improve the diagnostic capabilities of MRI of this particular anatomic region.