Confusingly Pronounced Pathologies Containing the Term ‘Spondy’

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Arslan R. S., Gültekin G., Ersoy M., Balcı A.

European Congress of Radiology 2026 (ECR 2026), Vienna, Austria, 4 - 08 March 2026, no.15990, pp.1, (Full Text)

Abstract

The term "spondylous" is the Ancient Greek equivalent for the spine. Pathological conditions affecting the vertebral column, with the word 'spondylo' in their name, can be broadly classified under four main categories.

We examined this broad spectrum of diseases under a single heading using direct radiography, CT, and MRI.

Spondylosis is an umbrella term encompassing the degenerative osteoarthritis of the spine. It includes a wide range of changes such as disc herniations, osteophytes, Schmorl’s nodes, hypertrophy of the facet joints and hypertrophy of the ligamentum flavum. Syndesmophytes seen in ankylosing spondylitis and anterior longitudinal ligament calcifications  observed in diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) should not be mistaken for degeneretive osteophytes.

Spondylitis refers to inflammation of the spine, which may occur due to infectious or non-infectious causes. In most cases, the inflammation of the intervertebral discs accompanies vertebral inflammation, and this condition is termed spondylodiscitis. Examples include pyogenic spondylodiscitis, tuberculous spondylodiscitis, and the Andersson lesion seen in ankylosing spondylitis.

Spondylolysis is defined as a defect in the pars interarticularis, the part of the vertebral arch connecting the superior and inferior articular processes. It is important to distinguish this condition from Oppenheimer ossicles, which are accessory bones related to the facet joints.

Spondylolisthesis is the slippage of one vertebra over another in the sagittal plane, classified by the position of the superior vertebra relative to the inferior. Anterior slippage is called anterolisthesis and posterior slippage is retrolisthesis. Severity is graded using the Meyerding classification.

We comparatively reviewed spondylosis, spondylitis, and spondylolysis -conditions that make up the majority of our daily musculoskeletal radiology practice- based on fundamental concepts.