Table 1 The qualitative grading systems of lumbar spinal stenosis on MRI
Grade 0 | Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Central lesion (Lee et al. 2011) [12] | No stenosis | Mild stenosis with clear separation of each cauda equine | Moderate stenosis with some cauda equina aggregation | Severe stenosis with the entire cauda equina as a bundle |
Foraminal lesion (Lee et al. 2010) [14] | Normal | Perineural fat obliteration in the two opposing directions | Perineural fat obliteration in the four directions | Nerve root collapse or morphologic change |