Bertolotti's syndrome: A commonly missed cause of back pain in young patients

Malays Fam Physician. 2015 Aug 31;10(2):55-8. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

Bertolotti's syndrome must be considered as a differential diagnosis for lower back pain in young people. Treatment, whether conservative or operative, is still debatable. In this paper, we report a case of a 20-year-old girl presenting with lower back pain for 8 years. We administered injection with local anaesthetic and steroid injections within the pseudo-articulation; however, the pain was relieved for 3 weeks. Surgical excision of the pseudo-articulation successfully treated her back pain and the sciatica.

Keywords: Bertolotti’s syndrome; back pain in young patients; transitional vertebrae.

Publication types

  • Case Reports