Reliability of the Goutallier Classification in Quantifying Muscle Fatty Degeneration in the Lumbar Multifidus Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Battaglia, Patrick J.; Maeda, Yumi; Welk, Aaron; Hough, Brad; Kettner, Norman

doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2013.12.010

Reliability of the Goutallier Classification in Quantifying Muscle Fatty Degeneration in the Lumbar Multifidus Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability of the Goutallier classification system (GCS) for grading muscle fatty degeneration in the lumbar multifidus (LM) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations. Methods Lumbar spine MRI scans were obtained retrospectivel…