Table 1_Quantitative MRI assessment of multifidus and erector spinae fatty degeneration in Parkinson's disease patients with lumbar degenerative disease: a propensity score-matched study.xlsx

Objective<p>This study aims to elucidate the characteristics of the multifidus and erector spinae muscles in patients suffering from lumbar degenerative diseases (LDD) complicated by Parkinson's disease (PD), through a comparative analysis with LDD patients who do not have PD.</p>Methods<p>Seventeen patients with LDD accompanied by PD (case group) and 17 patients with LDD without PD (control group) were enrolled through propensity score matching (1:1) from January 2020 to January 2025.

All participants underwent 1.5T lumbar MRI, and the semi-quantitative intramuscular fat-infiltration index (SIFI) and cross-sectional area (CSA) of the multifidus and erector spine muscles at the L3/4 and L4/5 levels were measured separately at each level.</p>Results<p>The semi-quantitative intramuscular fat-infiltration index (SIFI) values of multifidus (66.19 ± 14.03) and erector spinae (73.54 ± 11.76) averaged across L3/4 and L4/5 level in the case group were significantly higher than those in the control group (56.63 ± 4.84 and 53.34 ± 5.90, all P < 0.05).