Epiduroscopic Diagnostics

Abstract

The familiar shape of the spinal canal is characterized by various bends in the spinal column. In the areas with the greatest flexibility, such as the cervical and lumbar region, the spinal canal is triangular. In the thoracic region, where there is a low degree of flexibility, the spinal canal is round. The spinal canal is delimited ventrally by the individual vertebrae and the intervertebral discs. The spinal canal is delimited dorsally by laminae, the ligamentum flavum and the vertebral arches. Lateral delimitation is rendered by the pedicles and the laminae. In the area of the spine, several bands that span vertebrae can be distinguished, such as the supraspinous ligament, the anterior longitudinal ligament and the posterior longitudinal ligament. The supraspinous ligament runs over the tips of the spinal processes from C7 to the sacrum. The interspinal ligaments, which are attached to the spinous processes, the ligamentum flavum, which is attached to the vertebral arches, and the posterior longitudinal ligament, which runs within the spinal canal along the dorsal surface of the vertebrae, and the anterior longitudinal ligament, which runs ventrally along the vertebrae, are the most important intervertebral ligaments. The spinal canal contains the epidural, subdural and subarachnoid space.