title: Ventral thoracic spinal cord herniation: a commonly misdiagnosed and treatable cause of myelopathy.
abstract: Idiopathic ventral spinal cord herniation is a rare cause of progressive myelopathy that demonstrates unique radiological features. We describe a case of thoracic spinal cord herniation through an anterior dural defect and discuss the characteristic findings on magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomographic myelography. A 36-year-old man presented to our clinic with progressive leg weakness and spasticity in both legs. Magnetic resonance imaging of the thoracic spinal canal demonstrated C-shaped anterior kinking of an atrophied spinal cord and enlarged dorsal subarachnoid space at the T5-T6 level. Computed tomographic myelography showed ventral herniation of the spinal cord and no evidence of an intradural spinal arachnoid cyst. Ventral spinal cord herniation is a commonly misdiagnosed entity. Knowledge of the characteristic imaging appearance of this treatable condition is important for proper diagnosis and treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Baskent University, Faculty of Medicine; Ankara, Turkey - yalinozlem@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Alkan
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kizilkilic
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Karakurum Goksel
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yildirim
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Birol Sarica