Spinal intramedullary hamartoma with acute presentation in a 13-month old infant: case report

• Published in: Journal of neurosurgery. Pediatrics Vol. 18; no. 2; p. 177
• Main Authors: Samak, Eslam M, Abdel Latif, Assem M, Ghany, Walid Abdel, Hewedi, Iman H, Amer, Aboubakr, Moharram, Hussein
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.08.2016
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Hamartoma - diagnostic imaging; Hamartoma - surgery; Humans; Infant; Lumbar Vertebrae - diagnostic imaging; Lumbar Vertebrae - surgery; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Sacrum - diagnostic imaging; Sacrum - surgery; Spinal Cord Diseases - diagnostic imaging; Spinal Cord Diseases - surgery; Thoracic Vertebrae - diagnostic imaging; Thoracic Vertebrae - surgery; spine; spinal cord; NF-1 = neurofibromatosis Type 1; teratoma; hamartoma; oncology
• ISSN: 1933-0715
• DOI: 10.3171/2016.2.PEDS15561

True hamartomas of the spinal cord are very rare, and although several have been reported in the literature, there are few detailed radiological and pathological descriptions of the condition. There is also considerable overlap with other entities, the most common being spinal cord teratomas. The authors report the case of a 13-month-old child with a supragluteal sacral dimple who presented with acute neurological deterioration. MRI of the spine revealed a big intramedullary lesion with heterogeneous signal intensity. A near-total resection was performed, and histopathological examination demonstrated findings consistent with a spinal cord hamartoma. The authors believe that careful preoperative evaluation and rigorous pathological examination are mandatory to establish diagnosis and direct further management of cases in which such a lesion is suspected.