Identifying treatment patterns in patients with Bertolotti syndrome: an elusive cause of chronic low back pain

Histologic Assessment of Lumbosacral Transitional Vertebrae Pseudoarticulation as a Source of Pain in Bertolotti Syndrome

BACKGROUND

Bertolotti syndrome (BS) is characterized by chronic pain and functional impairment associated with lumbosacral transitional vertebrae (LSTVs). The study aimed to investigate the histologic characteristics of the pseudoarticulation between the enlarged transverse process and sacrum seen in Castellvi 2a LSTV and explore the involvement of nervous tissue in pain generation.

METHODS

Immunohistochemical analysis using S100 protein staining was performed to assess the presence of nerve tissue.

RESULTS

These changes included fibrillation, chondrocyte cloning, alterations in the proteoglycan matrix, and focal chondrocyte necrosis. Notably, no nerve tissue was observed in any of the specimens, as confirmed by negative S100 protein staining.

CONCLUSIONS

The study findings suggest that nerve tissue is not involved in the nociceptive mechanisms underlying pain in BS. The histologic similarities between the pseudoarticulation and osteoarthritic joints indicate that pseudoarticulation itself may be a significant source of pain in BS. These insights contribute to our understanding of the pathophysiology of BS and support treatment paradigms prioritizing pain control with medications such as NSAIDs before considering surgical intervention. Future studies with larger sample sizes and in vivo models are needed to further validate these findings and explore the changes in joint histology under biomechanical forces in LSTVs.

A systematic review and bibliometric study of Bertolotti's syndrome: clinical characteristics and global trends

PURPOSE

Bertolotti's syndrome is a prevalent congenital deformity. However, many physicians fail to include it in their differential diagnosis for low back pain (LBP), which results in missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis. There is still a lack of standardized treatment and management strategies for Bertolotti's syndrome. This study aimed to review the clinical characteristics and management of Bertolotti's syndrome and reports bibliometric insights in advancements in Bertolotti's syndrome research.

METHODS

Studies published until 30 September 2022 were systematically reviewed according to the PRISMA guidelines. Three independent reviewers extracted the data and assessed the quality and risk of bias of the studies based on the methodological index of non-randomized studies (MINORS). SPSS, VOS viewer, and the Citespace software were used for the systematic review, visual analysis, data mining, mapping, and clustering of the retrieved articles, which presented clear and visual presentations of the structural patterns of published research in graphs.

RESULT

A total of 118 articles, describing a total of 419 patients with Bertolotti's syndrome, were included. There was an upward trend with a steady increase in the number of publications. The world map distribution showed that most publications were predominantly from North America and Asia. The most cited articles were published in the following journals: Spine, J Bone Joint Surg, and Radiology. The mean age of the patients was 47.7 years, and 49.6% of them were male. A total of 159 (96.4%) patients had LBP symptoms. The mean symptom duration was 41.4 months (74.8%), and most of the patients had Castellvi type II. Disc degeneration was the most reported comorbid spinal diseases. The mean methodological index of non-randomized studies score was 4.16±3.95 points (range, 1-21). A total of 265 (68.3%) patients underwent surgical treatments. Minimally invasive surgical techniques, prevalence, image classification, and disc degeneration were the current main research areas of Bertolotti's syndrome.

CONCLUSIONS

The steady increase in the number of publications demonstrated the increased attention of researchers on this topic. Our results showed a significant prevalence of Bertolotti's syndrome in patients with LBP and a long symptom duration before the initiation of treatment. Surgical treatments were commonly used to treat patients with Bertolotti's syndrome after a non-effective conservative treatment. Minimally invasive surgical techniques, prevalence, image classification, and disc degeneration are the major research areas of Bertolotti's syndrome.

Quality-of-life and postoperative satisfaction following pseudoarthrectomy in patients with Bertolotti syndrome

BACKGROUND CONTEXT

Bertolotti syndrome is a clinical diagnosis given to patients with back pain arising from a lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LSTV). A particular class of LSTV involves a pseudoarticulation between the fifth lumbar transverse process and the sacral ala, and surgical resection of the pseudoarticulation may be offered to patients failing conservative management. Bertolotti syndrome is still not well understood, particularly regarding how patients respond to surgical resection of the LSTV pseudoarticulation.

PURPOSE

To examine change in quality-of-life (QOL) and patient satisfaction following surgical resection of the LSTV pseudoarticulation in patients with Bertolotti syndrome.

DESIGN

Ambidirectional observational cohort study of patients seen at a single institution's tertiary spine center over a 10-year period.

PATIENT SAMPLE

Cohort consisted of 31 patients with Bertolotti Syndrome who underwent surgical resection of the pseudoarticulation.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Preoperative and postoperative Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Global Health (PROMIS-GH) Mental and Physical Health T-scores, and a single-item postoperative satisfaction questionnaire.

METHODS

Patients were identified through diagnostic and procedural codes. Immediate preoperative PROMIS-GH scores available in the chart were gathered retrospectively, and postoperative PROMIS-GH and satisfaction scores were gathered prospectively through a mail-in survey.

RESULTS

Mean (SD) improvement of PROMIS-GH Physical Health T-score was 8.7 (10.5) (p<.001). Mean (SD) improvement of PROMIS-GH Mental Health T-scores was 5.9 (9.2) (p=.001). When stratifying PROMIS-GH T-scores by response to the patient satisfaction survey, there were significant group differences in mean change for Physical Health T-scores (p<.001), and Mental Health T-score (p=.009). Patients who stated, "The treatment met my expectations" had much greater mean improvement in the PROMIS-GH T-scores.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients undergoing a pseudoarticulation resection procedure may experience a significant improvement in quality-of-life as measured by PROMIS-GH Mental and Physical Health.

Identifying the relationship between lumbar sacralization and adjacent ligamentous anatomy in patients with Bertolotti syndrome and healthy controls

OBJECTIVE

Bertolotti syndrome is a diagnosis given to patients experiencing low-back pain due to a lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LSTV). LSTVs cause altered biomechanics at the lumbosacral junction, predisposing these patients to degenerative disease. It has been proposed that these patients have additional non-osseous variation such as ligamentous differences in the lumbar spine. The iliolumbar ligament, which attaches from the iliac crest to the transverse process of L4 and L5, plays a significant role in reducing lumbar motion in all six degrees of freedom; therefore, altered ligament anatomy can have a significant impact on stability. The purpose of this study was to examine the iliolumbar ligament complex in patients with Bertolotti syndrome and anatomically normal controls to determine if underdevelopment of the iliolumbar ligament complex is seen in Bertolotti syndrome.

METHODS

This is a retrospective analysis of patients with Bertolotti syndrome and anatomically normal controls who received care at the authors' institution between 2010 and 2020. Axial thickness of the iliolumbar ligament at the L5 vertebral level was assessed via MRI. Results were compared between the defective and normal side within unilaterally affected (Castellvi types IIa and IIIa) Bertolotti syndrome patients, between defective sides in bilaterally affected Bertolotti syndrome patients (Castellvi types IIb, IIIb, and IV), and between the affected side in Bertolotti syndrome patients and the corresponding location in normal controls.

RESULTS

A total of 173 patients were included in the study, 102 with Bertolotti syndrome and 71 controls. Among the Bertolotti patients, 49 had left LSTVs, 29 had right LSTVs, and 24 had bilateral LSTVs. For patients with unilateral defects, defective side ligaments were thinner than ligaments on the normal side (p < 0.05). For bilateral LSTVs, ligament thickness on each side was considered statistically equivalent (p < 0.05) and not significantly different from that in controls.

CONCLUSIONS

Bertolotti syndrome correlates to significant underdevelopment of the iliolumbar ligament corresponding to the side of the LSTV as compared to the ligament on the contralateral side. In patients with bilateral LSTVs, no difference in the iliolumbar ligament compared to that in controls was seen. Developmental changes in the iliolumbar ligament may further exacerbate the altered lumbosacral biomechanics seen in patients with unilateral LSTV, whereas bilateral LSTVs may still allow normal development of the ligament complex. Further research should be done to examine the discrepancies seen in this study.