Dimensions Of The Lumbar Spinal Canal In Normal Adult Chinese People

Object: To determine the normal dimensions of the lumbar spinal canal of Chinese people with CT,and to provide criteria for diagnosing spinal stenosis.Methods: The computed tomography (CT) scans of 100 normal adult Chinese people 21-55 years of age were studied to obtain accuracy data on Chinese lumbar spinal canal.The study population was composed of 50 men and 50 women.6 parameters were measured from each vertebral level, concluding the transverse and sagittal dimensions of lumbar spinal canal, the transverse of vertebral bodies, and the interfacet distance. All the data were statistically analyzed for differences between men and women. Result: The results show that for Chinese people there is a significant sex difference(P<0.01 or P<0.001) for transverses of interpedicular diameter (IPD), vertebral body width(VBW), and interfacet distance(IFD),but not for sagittal diameter(SD).The ration between the width of the vertebral body and the mean transverse diameter of the lumbar spinal canal (canal/body ration;C/B) is 0.52-0.55. The ration between IPD and IFD is 0.76-0.79.Conclusion: The normal dimensions of the lumbar spinal canal in adult Chinese people can be obtained with CT. From these data ,wecan provide some parameters for diagnosing spinal stenosis.