Increased cerebrospinal fluid nitrite and nitrate levels in patients with lumbar spondylosis.

Nitric oxide is thought to mediate the cytotoxic effects of certain neurologic diseases. To investigate whether overproduction of nitric oxide may play a role in lumber spondylosis, we compared the levels of nitrite and nitrate in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from patients with lumbar spondylosis with those from a control group by automated flow injection analysis. CSF levels of nitric oxide metabolites were significantly higher in patients with lumbar spondylosis compared with the control (p < 0.01). Nitric oxide may play a role in lumbar pain or nerve damage in sciatic and the CSF nitrite/nitrate may be used as a diagnostic parameter of spinal diseases.