Lumbar vertebrae

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Lumbar spine
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Lumbar vertebrae
Position of human lumbar vertebrae (shown in red). It consists of 5 bones, from the top down, L1, L2, L3, L4 and L5.
Animation of L1
Details
InsertionsPsoas major muscle
NerveLumbar nerves
Identifiers
Latinvertebrae lumbales
MeSHD008159
TA98A02.2.04.001
TA21068
FMA9921
Anatomical terms of bone

The lumbar vertebrae are located between the

quadrupeds
. In humans, there are five lumbar vertebrae. The term is used to describe the anatomy of humans and quadrupeds, such as horses, pigs, or cattle. These bones are found in particular cuts of meat, including tenderloin or sirloin steak.

Human anatomy

In human anatomy, the five

foramen transversarium within the transverse process (since it is only found in the cervical region) and by the absence of facets on the sides of the body (as found only in the thoracic region
). They are designated L1 to L5, starting at the top. The lumbar vertebrae help support the weight of the body, and permit movement.

General characteristics

Lumbar vertebrae

The adjacent figure depicts the general characteristics of the first through fourth lumbar vertebrae. The fifth vertebra contains certain peculiarities, which are detailed below.

As with other vertebrae, each lumbar vertebra consists of a vertebral body and a vertebral arch. The vertebral arch, consisting of a pair of pedicles and a pair of laminae, encloses the vertebral foramen (opening) and supports seven processes.

Body

The

vertebral body of each lumbar vertebra is kidney shaped, wider from side to side than from front to back, and a little thicker in front than in back. It is flattened or slightly concave above and below, concave behind, and deeply constricted in front and at the sides.[1]

Arch

The

kyphoplasty
or vertebroplasty.

The

laminae are broad, short, and strong.[1]
They form the posterior portion of the vertebral arch. In the upper lumbar region the lamina are taller than wide but in the lower lumbar vertebra the lamina are wider than tall. The lamina connects the spinous process to the pedicles.

The vertebral foramen within the arch is triangular, larger than the thoracic vertebrae, but smaller than in the cervical vertebrae.[1]

Processes

The

spinous process is thick, broad, and somewhat quadrilateral; it projects backward and ends in a rough, uneven border, thickest below where it is occasionally notched.[1]

The superior and inferior articular processes are well-defined, projecting respectively upward and downward from the junctions of pedicles and laminae. The facets on the superior processes are concave, and look backward and medialward; those on the inferior are convex, and are directed forward and lateralward. The former are wider apart than the latter since in the articulated column, the inferior articular processes are embraced by the superior processes of the subjacent vertebra.[1]

The

transverse processes are long and slender. They are horizontal in the upper three lumbar vertebrae and incline a little upward in the lower two. In the upper three vertebrae they arise from the junctions of the pedicles and laminae, but in the lower two they are set farther forward and spring from the pedicles and posterior parts of the vertebral bodies. They are situated in front of the articular processes instead of behind them as in the thoracic vertebrae, and are homologous with the ribs.[1]

Three portions or tubercles can be noticed in a transverse process of a lower lumbar vertebrae: the lateral or

accessory process.[2] The costiform is lateral, the mammillary is superior (cranial), and the accessory is inferior (caudal). The mammillary is connected in the lumbar region with the back part of the superior articular process.[clarification needed] The accessory process is situated at the back part of the base of the transverse process. The tallest and thickest costiform process is usually that of L5.[2]

First and fifth lumbar vertebrae

The fifth lumbar vertebra from above

The first lumbar vertebra is level with the anterior end of the

ninth rib. This level is also called the important transpyloric plane, since the pylorus of the stomach is at this level. Other important structures are also located at this level, they include; fundus of the gall bladder, celiac trunk, superior mesenteric artery, termination of spinal cord, beginning of filum terminale, renal vessels, middle suprarenal arteries, and hila of kidneys
.

The fifth lumbar vertebra is characterized by its body being much deeper in front than behind, which accords with the prominence of the sacrovertebral articulation; by the smaller size of its spinous process; by the wide interval between the inferior articular processes, and by the thickness of its transverse processes, which spring from the body as well as from the pedicles.[1] The fifth lumbar vertebra is by far the most common site of spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis.[3]

Most individuals have five lumbar vertebrae, while some have four or six. Lumbar disorders that normally affect L5 will affect L4 or L6 in these latter individuals.

Segmental movements

The range of segmental movements in a single segment is difficult to measure clinically, not only because of variations between individuals, but also because it is age and sex dependent. Furthermore, flexion and extension in the lumbal spine is the product of a combination of rotation and translation in the sagittal plane between each vertebra.[4]

Ranges of segmental movements in the lumbar spine (White and Punjabi, 1990) are (in degrees): [5]

  L1-L2 L2-L3 L3-L4 L4-L5 L5-S1
Flexion/
Extension		 12° 14° 15° 16° 17°
Lateral
flexion		 6° 6° 8° 6° 3°
Axial
rotation		 2° 2° 2° 2° 1°

Congenital anomalies

Main article: Congenital vertebral anomaly

Congenital vertebral anomalies can cause compression of the spinal cord by deforming the vertebral canal or causing instability.

  • Lumbarization of sacral vertebra 1, seen as 6 vertebrae that do not connect to ribs.
    Lumbarization of
    ribs
    .
  • Sacralization of the L5 vertebra is seen at the lower right of the image.
    Sacralization of the L5 vertebra is seen at the lower right of the image.
  • Congenital block vertebra of the lumbar spine. CT volume rendering.
    Congenital block vertebra of the lumbar spine. CT volume rendering.

Other apes

African apes have three and four lumbar vertebrae, (bonobos have longer spines with an additional vertebra) and humans normally five. This difference, and because the lumbar spines of the extinct Nacholapithecus (a Miocene hominoid with six lumbar vertebrae and no tail) are similar to those of early Australopithecus and early Homo, it is assumed that the chimpanzee–human last common ancestor also had a long vertebral column with a long lumbar region and that the reduction in the number of lumbar vertebrae evolved independently in each ape clade.[6] The limited number of lumbar vertebrae in chimpanzees and gorillas result in an inability to lordose (curve) their lumbar spines, in contrast to the spines of Old World monkeys and Nacholapithecus and Proconsul, which suggests that the last common ancestor was not "short-backed" as previously believed. [7]

Additional images

MRI

  • MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal T2 FRFSE)
    MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal T2 FRFSE)
  • MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal T1 FSE)
    MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal T1 FSE)
  • MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal FAST STIR)
    MRI lumbar spine with degeneration (sagittal FAST STIR)
  • MRI lumbar spine pre-hemilaminectomy (sagittal T2 FRFSE)
  • MRI lumbar spine pre-hemilaminectomy (sagittal T1 FSE)
  • MRI lumbar spine pre-hemilaminectomy (sagittal FAST STIR)
  • MRI lumbar spine post-hemilaminectomy (sagittal T2 FRFSE)
  • MRI lumbar spine post-hemilaminectomy (sagittal T1 FSE)
  • Contrast MRI lumbar spine post-hemilaminectomy (sagittal T1 FSE FS)

Illustrations

  • 3D image of a lumbar vertebra
    3D image of a lumbar vertebra
  • Position of lumbar vertebrae (shown in red). Animation.
    Position of lumbar vertebrae (shown in red). Animation.
  • Same as the left. Bones around the lumbar vertebrae are shown as semi-transparent.
    Same as the left. Bones around the lumbar vertebrae are shown as semi-transparent.
  • Shape of lumbar vertebrae (shown in blue and yellow). Animation.
    Shape of lumbar vertebrae (shown in blue and yellow). Animation.
  • Vertebral column.
    Vertebral column.
  • Muscles of the iliac and anterior femoral regions. First lumbar vertebra second highest vertebra seen.
    Muscles of the iliac and anterior femoral regions. First lumbar vertebra second highest vertebra seen.
  • Orientation of vertebral column on surface. T3 is at level of medial part of spine of scapula. T7 is at inferior angle of the scapula. L4 is at highest point of iliac crest. S2 is at the level of posterior superior iliac spine. Furthermore, C7 is easily localized as a prominence at the lower part of the neck.[8]
    Orientation of vertebral column on surface. T3 is at level of medial part of
    inferior angle of the scapula. L4 is at highest point of iliac crest. S2 is at the level of posterior superior iliac spine. Furthermore, C7 is easily localized as a prominence at the lower part of the neck.[8]
  • Vertebral column
    Vertebral column
  • Illustration highlighting lumbar spine.
    Illustration highlighting lumbar spine.
  • A lumbar vertebra seen from the side
    A lumbar vertebra seen from the side
  • Ossification of lumbar vertebrae
    Ossification of lumbar vertebrae

See also

References

Public domain This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 104 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Gray's Anatomy (1918), see infobox
  2. ^ a b Postacchini, Franco (1999) Lumbar Disc Herniation p.19
  3. ^ Eizenberg, N. et al. (2008). General Anatomy: Principles and Applications, p. 17.
  4. S2CID 43352264. Archived from the original
    on November 14, 2010.
  5. ^ Hansen; et al. (2006). "Ranges of Segmental Motion for the Lumbar Spine". Medscape. Archived from the original on July 5, 2015.
  6. PMID 19688850
    . (Abstract)
  7. PMID 20855303
    . (Introduction)
  8. ^ Anatomy Compendium (Godfried Roomans and Anca Dragomir)

External links

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