Calcifications of the Intervertebral Discs and the Relationship between Various Types of Calcifications in the Soft Tissues of the Body

Calcifications of the intervertebral discs were mentioned for the first time by LUSCHKA in his textbook of anatomy.They were demonstrated roentgenologically in cadavers by BEKEKE in 1897, and were first described in human beings in 1922, by C A L V ~ and GALLAND.SCHMORL was the first to make thorough pathological-anatomical investigations of these Calcifications, which have since been discussed in numerous works by clinicians and roentgenologists.The etiology, and the manner in which they arise, is unknown.I n the literature, according to SCHMORL, the etiology is presumed to be traumatic (BARSONY and POLGAR, LYON and others), or to involve persistent overloading (HOREN-STEIN and others (cit.SCHMORL)), inflammation (LYON arid others), senile alterations ( N O R L ~N , among others), or some disturbance of the calcium metabolism.SCHMORL himself believes that they arise secondarily to small ruptures with areas of necrosis which become calcified in the intervertebral discs and that in addition some general disturbance in the calcium metabolism probably has a contributory effect.Some investigators (BARSONY and KOPPENSTEIN, LYON and others) have observed cases with calcifications which presented certain signs which they regarded as being caused by the calcifications (malcinosis intervertebralis)) -)dische calcifianteo).SCHMORL, on the contrary, in common with HOLFELDER (cit.SCHMORL), considers the calcifications to have no clinical significance whatever.The object of this treatise is to attempt to make a contribution to the etiology of these disc calcifications.It is based on observations both of calcifications elsewhere in the soft tissues of the body and of disc ~-l