[Inflammatory diseases of the spinal column and the myelon]

Inflammatory diseases of the spine and the spinal cord (myelon) can be caused by a wide range of pathological conditions. Except for degenerative inflammatory diseases of the spine, infectious and autoimmune disorders are relatively rare. The latter can also be a significant source of pain and disability, especially if these hard to diagnose conditions go untreated. In cases of advanced disease some entities, such as spondylodiscitis or rheumatoid arthritis can cause severe neurological impairment especially by progressive intraspinal spread. Inflammation of the myelon cannot be depicted with conventional radiographs in general and by computed tomography only occasionally. In these cases magnetic resonance imaging is the method of choice to detect early abnormalities of the myelon and to provide detailed information for the differential diagnosis.