title: Spontaneous resolution of spinal epidural lipomatosis.
abstract: Spinal epidural lipomatosis (SEL) is an abnormal accumulation of unencapsulated, epidural fat. SEL can be divided into idiopathic and secondary. Secondary SEL is often associated with chronic steroid use and endocrinopathies. Idiopathic SEL has been associated with obesity. SEL has been implicated in a variety of neurologic impairments and surgical decompression has been shown to prevent further worsening or result in improvement. We report a 53-year-old man with obesity and a history of chronic back pain who developed idiopathic SEL diagnosed by MRI, which subsequently resolved completely over an 8 month follow-up period. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of complete radiographic resolution of SEL without any treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Baylor College of Medicine, 1709 Dryden, Suite 750, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: ap144168@bcm.edu.
authors.forename: Akash J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sellin
authors.forename: Bruce L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Ehni
authors.forename: Claudio E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Tatsui
mesh_terms: D015897:Comorbidity; D004824:Epidural Space / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000453:epidemiology; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology; D008068:Lipomatosis / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D012075:Remission, Spontaneous
keywords: Lumbar epidural lipomatosis; Regression; Resolution; Spinal epidural lipomatosis