[Lumbar disc disease in adolescents]

Intervertebral disc herniation is a very common neurosurgical pathology. Most commonly disc disease occurs in adults and series published in children are only few and each reports only few cases. A genetic factor has been considered but in none of our patients there was a family history of disc disease.

We report ten patients with disc herniations in adolescents occurring among 1920 patients operated of herniated discs between 1988 and 1998. These herniations in adolescents were all related to some sport activities, and they occurred in the age range of 12 to 16 years. Symptoms were back pain and lower extremities pains of roots L5 or S1. All were studied with magnetic resonance imaging and in all patients the herniated disc was either in L4 L5 or L5 S1 intervertebral spaces. All disc were subligamental and 81.5% were posterolateral in position. Pathological studies of the herniated discs showed elastic consistency with high water content without degenerative changes.

After microscopic removal of the herniated discs pain disappeared and remained so in the follow up. It was not necessary to reoperate in any of these patients and the postoperative follow up was between 2 and 5 years.

Herniated disc disease is very infrequent in adolescents and all recovered completely after surgery, and the localization is posterolateral and subligamental.