Thermography in low back pain and sciatica

Abstract

This investigation proved that thermography is a reliable method of examination. When the difference of temperature in the legs reached 1 degree C or more, there was a correlation between clinical sciatica and the thermographic registration in 51 of 52 patients. As regards diagnosing the level, thermography is unreliable for distinguishing an L4/L5 syndrome from an S1 syndrome. In this investigation it was possible to correlate colder zones and the clinical syndrome in most patients. However, there is a large overlap between the dermatomes. When following up the results of autotraction no certain conclusions can be drawn, but among the patients with sciatica the decrease in temperature was greater in the group who clinically recovered.

Correlation of thermal deficit with clinical parameters and functional status in patients with unilateral lumbosacral radiculopathy

“…7 Some studies have shown that IRT can estimate the severity of the clinical manifestation of unilateral lumbosacral radiculopathy. 5,[9][10][11] The aim of this study was to examine the correlation of regional thermal deficit of the affected lower extremity with pain intensity, mobility of the lumbar spine, and functional status in patients with unilateral lumbosacral radiculopathy.…”

“…7,22 Our research focused on the lower extremities, similar to the majority of research on lumbosacral radiculopathy within the field of thermography. 6,7,10,11 Detection and visualisation of skin temperature changes in the affected lower extremity was by IRT. This detects IR rays emitted from the surface of the body and then focuses and directs them by special lenses towards a photosensor that transforms the energy of the detected IR rays into electric impulses and then into a visible recording-a thermogram.…”

“…17,24 Qualitative analysis of the thermograms of patients showed regional hypothermia of the affected lower extremity, and has also been observed in other studies. 7,10,11 Regional hypothermia is considered a consequence of the sympathetic vasoconstrictor reflex that develops due to irritation of the dorsal root of the spinal nerve. 7,22 Some authors describe hypothermia as muscle atrophy caused by denervation or inactivity.…”

Thermographic Findings in Patients with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis Before and After Walking

“…Subsequently, several related reports have been published. For example, some studies used a highly sensitive infrared thermography protocol to show that skin temperature abnormalities were associated with spinal radiculopathy 5,9,[16][17][18] . The findings confirm that the results obtained using infrared thermography are well correlated with those obtained with computerized tomography (CT), myelography, and MRI.…”

Die Wertigkeit der Thermographie in der Diagnose lumbosakraler Radikulopathien

“…Diesen ersten wissenschaftlichklinischen Studien folgten weitere vielversprechende Arbeiten, die sich mit Sensitivität und Spezifität derThermographie auseinandersetzten. Gillström (1985) konnte gar bei 51 von 52 Patienten eine Ubereinstimmung zwischen dem kiinischen lschiassyndrom und der dazugehorigen thermographischen Aufzeichnung feststeilen, wobei der Positivität der Thermographie em Temperaturunterschied von 1 °C oder mehr zwischen den beiden korrespondierenden 1-hautarealen zugrunde gelegt wurde. Dies ergibt eine Sensitivität von 98%.…”