Rheumatoid Arthritis of the Lumbar Spine

Abstract

A series of lateral radiographs of the lumbar spine from subjects aged 55-64 yrs. with rheumatoid arthritis and/or a positive sheep-cell agglutination test (SCAT) were compared with a series of spines from non-rheumatoid controls of the same age and sex. Subluxation, disk narrowing without vertebral osteophytosis, apophyseal erosions had osteoporosis were more common in the rheumatoid group. Sclerosis and anterior wear of the vertebral plates were more common in the non-rheumatoid group. By these criteria, lumbar rheumatoid arthritis was present in 5% of males and in 3% of females. There is a relationship between lumbar rheumatoid arthritis and the SCAT titer, erosive arthritis of the hands and feet and rheumatoid arthritis of the cervical spine. Autopsy findings in the lumbar spines of 4 patients with rheumatoid arthritis are reported.