title: Spinal congenital dermal sinus presenting as a diagnostic conundrum.
abstract: Spinal congenital dermal sinus is a rare entity. Still rarer is its location over the thoracic and cervical spine. Secondary to congenital dermal sinus, intramedullary abscesses of the spinal cord are uncommon. Only few cases of such an association have been reported in the literature. We report such an interesting case of thoracic spinal congenital dermal sinus associated with intramedullary abscess in an 18-month-old boy who presented with a diagnostic conundrum. The pathogenesis, clinical presentation, neuroimaging and management of such cases are discussed. Awareness, detection, timely referral and definitive operative intervention for a better neurological outcome are emphasized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: Abhisek
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chopra
authors.forename: Bijoy
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Patra
authors.forename: Satinder
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aneja
authors.forename: Sharmilla
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mukherjee
authors.forename: Anu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maheswari
authors.forename: Anju
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Seth
mesh_terms: D000038:Abscess / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D016136:Spina Bifida Occulta / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae