title: Thoracic lipomeningocele associated with diastematomyelia, tethered spinal cord, and hydrocephalus. Case report.
abstract: Accessory human tails are uncommon malformations consisting of meningeal and neural structures and possibly occult spinal dysraphism (pseudotails). The thoracic location of a lipomeningocele constituting a pseudotail is very rare. The authors report the case of a young boy harboring a thoracic dorsal appendage consisting of a lipomeningocele and a dermoid cyst that was complicated by the presence of diastematomyelia, tethered spinal cord, syringomyelia, and mild hydrocephalus. The preoperative moderate ventricular dilation was decompressed by the surgical repair of the spinal malformation and required a specific treatment. The authors discuss the rare association of these clinical entities and conclude that complete spine and brain neuroimaging studies are necessary for the correct surgical planning of this kind of malformation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Catholic University Medical School, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Benedetta Ludovica
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Pettorini
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Massimi
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cianfoni
authors.forename: Giovanna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Paternoster
authors.forename: Gianpiero
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tamburini
authors.forename: Concezio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Di Rocco
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003884:Dermoid Cyst / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D006849:Hydrocephalus / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008588:Meningocele / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures; D016135:Spinal Dysraphism / Q000150:complications; D013595:Syringomyelia / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae; D017287:Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt