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Multinational research links human SKT gene to lumbar disc herniation
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 Yoshiharu Kawaguchi |
GOTHENBURG, Sweden — Three single nucleotide polymorphisms were significantly associated with human lumbar disc herniation, and one in particular — the SNP rs16924573 — was most significantly associated with the condition, according to new multinational research.
Yoshiharu Kawaguchi, MD, presented the results of the case-control association study by Finnish and Japanese researchers at the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine Annual Meeting 2011 here.
Kawaguchi said that all three of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) they evaluated were detectable in two Japanese study populations, as well as in Finnish patients with lumbar disc herniation (LDH), compared with controls without LDH. However, SNP rs16924573, the human SKT gene, was most strongly associated with LDH.
“We positively found an association of the SKT gene with LDH in different ethnic populations. This study has global impact,” Kawaguchi said. “Our theory is the SKT gene is important in the etiology of LDH.”
To be included in the study, the LDH patients needed a positive diagnosis of LDH based on MRI results, being treated for the herniation by an orthopaedist for more than 1 year, and unilateral leg pain lasting for more than 3 months.
Reference:
- Karasugi T, Semba K, Kawaguchi Y, et al. Association of the Tag SNPs in the human SKT gene with lumbar disc herniation. Paper #P35. Presented at the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine Annual Meeting 2011. June 14-18. Gothenburg, Sweden.
- Disclosure: Kawaguchi has no relevant financial disclosures.
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