| Macroscopic and microscopic studies of several large series of human vertebral zygapophyseal (facet) joints have revealed the highly variable morphology of meniscoid inclusions within them. These spinal meniscoids can be slight and innocuous, large enough to interfere with normal movements, or even dense enough to erode articular surfaces producing and associated with degenerative changes in the spine and related structures. The relevant literature on these important structures over the past century and a half is reviewed and summarized, with improvements suggested in spinal meniscoid terminology.;Biomechanical and clinical implications of zygapophyseal meniscoids and presumptive meniscoids are considered, with correlative evidence from previous studies and numerous original dissections. It is anticipated that improved understanding of the roles and effects of various forms of these spinal structures may help explain some enigmatic dysfunctions of the back, allowing better treatments and therapies of these conditions to be subsequently applied. |
