Spinal meningiomas in patients younger than 50 years of age: a 21-year experience.
OBJECTIVE
Spinal meningiomas occur most frequently in older patients. They are well-circumscribed and slow-growing tumors that are associated with good patient outcomes following surgery. Spinal meningiomas occurring in younger patients may be more aggressive, with a worse prognosis. The authors present their 21-year experience with spinal meningiomas in patients younger than 50 years of age.


METHODS
The authors reviewed data obtained in 40 patients (age < 50 years) treated at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, during the past 21 years; in all cases the lesions were histologically confirmed spinal meningiomas. Five men (12.5%) and 35 women (87.5%) (mean age 34.5 +/- 10.9 years) underwent 52 operations for 41 tumors. The mean follow-up duration was 82 +/- 93 months (range 0-445 months). The data obtained in these patients were compared with those derived from a random control cohort of 40 patients older than age 50 years in whom spinal meningiomas were resected at the Mayo Clinic during a similar period. In this cohort, there were 33 women and seven men whose mean age was 67.1 +/- 9.5 years. The mean follow-up duration for the older group was 88 +/- 72.3 months (range 18-309 months). Compared with the random cohort of older patients, younger patients there tended to have more tumors located in the cervical spine (39%) as well as a greater number of predisposing factors such as neurofibromatosis Type 2, radiation exposure, or trauma. Nine (22%) of the patients younger than 50 years of age required reoperation for residual or recurrent tumor compared with two (5%) in the older patient control group. The overall mortality rate at the completion of the study for the younger patients was 10%.


CONCLUSIONS
Spinal meningiomas in younger patients have a worse prognosis than similar tumors in older patients.
Cohen-Gadol
Aaron A
AA
Department of Neurologic Surgery, Mayo Medical School, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota, USA. cohengado.aaron@mayo.edu.rrh
Zikel
Ofer M
OM
Koch
Cody A
CA
Scheithauer
Bernd W
BW
Krauss
William E
WE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007796:Laminectomy / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008579:Meningioma / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012086:Reoperation; D013120:Spinal Cord Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome