Lumber facet arthropathy and a herniated disk are two major causes of low back pain and sciatica. The authors evaluated the importance of computed tomography (CT) in 243 patients with low back pain and/or sciatica. Lumbar facet abnormalities were found in 139 patients (57%), and a herniated disk was found in 48 patients (20%). CT findings correlated precisely with surgical observations in cases involving a herniated disk and correlated well with the results of an intra-articular facet block in a small series of patients. CT can effectively diagnose and differentiate between lumbar facet arthropathy and a herniated disk.
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Carrera et al. (1980) studied this question.