International Journal of Anatomical Sciences 2010, 1: 7-10
Research Paper
Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis
Ravichandran D,Muthukumaravel N, Deepti S, Melani R, Subramaniam PM.
Department of Anatomy, VMKV Medical College, Salem, India; bDepartment of Anatomy, Annapoorna Medical College, Salem, India; Department of Anatomy, SRMC&RI, Chennai, India; dDepartment of Pathology, VMKV Medical College, Salem, India
Key Words: thoracic vertebrae, anterior longitudinal ligament, supra-spinous ligament
Abstract: A dry bone specimen comprising six thoracic vertebrae held together by ossified anterior longitudinal and supra-spinous ligaments is reported. The specimen was subjected to plain radiography. The antero-posterior and lateral views confirmed the ossification of the above ligaments. Moreover, the ossified anterior ligament was found to be separated from the body of the vertebrae by a space and a radio-dense line paralleling the longitudinal axis of the vertebrae. The inter-vertebral disc space and the zygoapophyseal joint space were free. A piece of the ossified mass, subjected to histo-pathological examination also confirmed the ossified ligaments. Review of literature suggests that this is a case of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH).