When must an MRI be performed for an X-ray that shows inflammation in my lower back (L5/S1)?

Doctor's Answers 1

Orthopaedic Surgeon

Hi, X-rays will not show actual inflammation in your lower back.

It does show:

the alignment of the spine
whether there are any fractures,
or perhaps indirectly show spasm of the lumbar muscles by showing the abnormal Alignment of the spine.

To show actual inflammation, nerve compression, slipped discs or tears in the discs, tumours etc, an MRI would be required.

So if you have persistant back pain, an MRI would often be needed to further highlight any other potential pathology in the lumbar spine.

We also usually do flexion & extension/ oblique X-ray views of the lumbar spine as well as it does give us abit more information. (In addition to the standard AP & lateral views)

Hope this helps

Kind regards

Dr Sean Ng

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