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Spine
intermediate
X-Type

Facet Arthropathy - Medial Branch Block, Facet Syndrome and Radiofrequency Ablation

Degenerative Spine

A 58-year-old woman presents with 2 years of chronic low back pain worse with extension and rotation. Pain is localized to the paraspinal region and does not radiate below the knee. Examination reveals tenderness over the L4-5 facet joints bilaterally, pain with lumbar extension, and negative straight leg raise. MRI shows facet hypertrophy and joint effusions at L4-5 with mild disc degeneration. Regarding facet arthropathy and facet syndrome:

Mark each as TRUE or FALSE

A

FACET SYNDROME (zygapophyseal joint pain) accounts for 15-45% of chronic low back pain; it is charac...

B

FACET JOINT INNERVATION: each facet joint receives DUAL innervation from the MEDIAL BRANCH of the do...

C

Facet syndrome causes pain radiating to the feet with positive straight leg raise; the facet joint i...

D

IMAGING features of facet arthropathy: joint space narrowing, osteophyte formation, subchondral scle...

E

DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS includes: discogenic pain (worse with flexion/sitting), sacroiliac joint dysf...

Answer the questions to see explanations

Click T (True) or F (False) for each option