Cervical meningocele with tethered cord in a seven-years old child: Case Report

摘要

Meningoceles are typically associated with other congenital spinal anomalies, and are usuallydiagnosed in childhood. Cervical meningoceles are extremely uncommon congenital spinal anomalies. Most patients have no neurological deficit at presentation and treatment has been mainly cosmetic. Treatment aims to prevent future neurological deterioration, and should include careful intradural exploration with untethering of the cord. We report a case of cervical meningocele in a 7-year-old girl. The tethering band, confirmed intra-operatively. Untethering of the cord was performed together with resection of the sac and repair of the dura. Early intervention is recommended even in cases with normal neurological examinations in order to prevent deterioration. These cases should be operated as soon as possible after birth. Introduction Cervical meningoceles and myelomeningoceles account for only 4% to 8% of spina bifida cystica lesions. Cervical meningoceles comprise only a small proportion of neural tube defects [123]. A meningocele is a single, posteriorly herniating cystic sac. The sac is cerebrospinal fluid filled and is lined by arachnoid and dura [4]. There may be a band of tissue that tents the posterior aspect of the cervical cord and extends into the wall of the sac either to the base or the dome [5]. A small number of reports have noted that meningoceles may feature associated tethering of the cervical spinal cord [126].In this report, we presented a 7 year-old patient harboring a meningocel in the upper cervical region with neurological deficit and tethered cord. The lesion was treated surgically. Case History A 7-years-old girl suffering from a posterior mass in the cervical region was admitted to our clinic (Figure 1).