What causes Pancake vertebra in the spine on plain radiography?
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Answer:
Pancake vertebra, also known as vertebra plana, represents a severely flattened vertebral body due to pathological processes such as Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH, or eosinophilic granuloma), metastasis (including myeloma and lymphoma), trauma, infection (e.g., tuberculosis), osteoporosis, or rarely giant cell tumor.
Why is it called so?
It is named pancake vertebra due to the radiographic appearance resembling a thin, flat pancake from uniform, severe compression and loss of height of the entire vertebral body while sparing the posterior elements.
Pathophysiology
Aggressive lytic destruction or weakening of the vertebral body trabeculae by the underlying pathology leads to extreme collapse under normal axial loading, resulting in uniform anterior-posterior flattening with preservation of the disc spaces and posterior arch.
Alternative names: Vertebra plana
Other associated named signs: None
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