Nutrition of the Intervertebral Disc

To summarize the information on disc nutrition in relation to disc degeneration. SUMMARY OF THE BACKGROUND DATA: The disc is avascular, and the disc cells depend on diffusion from blood vessels at the disc's margins to supply the nutrients essential for cellular activity and viability and to remove metabolic wastes such as lactic acid. The nutrient supply can fail due to changes in blood supply, sclerosis of the subchondral bone or endplate calcification, all of which can block transport from blood supply to the disc or due to changes in cellular demand.

A review of the studies on disc blood supply, solute transport, studies of solute transport in animal and human disc in vitro, and of theoretical modeling studies that have examined factors affecting disc nutrition.