Age dependent changes in cervical region of the spine according to data of nuclear magnetic tomography

Morphological characteristics of spine cervical region were studied in 132 patients (62 female and 70 male) aged 12-76 years using magnetic resonance tomography. The imaging was performed with the use of T1 and T2--weighting regimes. The study revealed sex- and age-dependent differences in the dimensions of cervical vertebrae. Height and sagittal dimensions of vertebral bodies were significantly smaller in females than in males. With advancing age the reduction in vertebral body height was more expressed in women, while the increase of vertebral body sagittal dimensions was similar in both males and females. The sagittal dimension of vertebral canal was correlated with sagittal dimension of vertebral body (r = 0.69) in males and with transverse dimension of vertebral body (r = 0.82) in females. The data obtained should be taken into consideration during evaluation of the state of bony structures of cervical vertebrae, intervertebral discs and in the diagnosis of pathological processes in the spine cervical region.