Tethered cervical spinal cord due to a hamartomatous stalk in a young adult. Case report.
The authors report on an unusual case of a congenital tethered cervical spinal cord in young man who presented with progressive tetraparesis. Neuroradiological evaluation of the spine revealed a discrete exophitic cervical spinal cord mass with a stalk of tissue that extended from the mass and terminated in the muscle tissue. The patient underwent a laminectomy with intradural exploration. A stalklike lesion was discovered and excised. Pathological examination showed that the stalk was formed of hamartomatous tissue. The patient improved following surgery, which suggested that tethering of the cervical spinal cord was responsible for his symptoms.
Perrini
Paolo
P
Departments of Neurosurgery, and Human Pathology and Oncology, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy.
Scollato
Antonio
A
Guidi
Enrico
E
Benedetto
Nicola
N
Buccoliero
Anna Maria
AM
Di Lorenzo
Nicola
N
D000328:Adult; D006222:Hamartoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007796:Laminectomy / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D010291:Paresis / Q000209:etiology; D013118:Spinal Cord Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed