• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• 제29권2호
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• pp.274-279
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• 2000

A 35-year-old female patient who had been paraplegic since her upper thoracic cord injury one and a half years before was presented with a syringomyelia involving C7 to T2 cord segments on follow-up magnetic resonance imaging(MRI). Her pain on the chest and bilateral axilla worsened since about 2 years after initial injury, and MRI demonstrated a progressively enlarging cystic syrinx cavity of the cervicothoracic cord. The posttraumatic syringomyelia was managed operatively by lysis of the arachnoid adhesions, myelotomy, and expansile duraplasty. Post-operatively her pain was relieved, and MRI showed decrease in size of the syrinx, and digital infrared thermographic imaging(DITI) showed diminution of the hyperthermic area on the anterior chest. In conclusion, the posttraumatic syringomyelia can be managed successfully without shunt operation. It seems apparent that expansile duraplasty is effective in controlling the posttraumatic syrinx.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• 제29권10호
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• pp.1389-1395
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• 2000

A case report of a post-traumatic syringomyelia in a 29-year old male, developed 15 years after an L1 burst fracture, is presented. On preoperative MRI, the syrinx extended cephalad above the fracture site through the whole thoracic and cervical cord. Serial myelo-CT was performed to evaluate the dynamics of CSF. It was managed by lysis of the arachnoid adhesions, syringosubarachnoid shunt, and expansile duraplasty. After surgery, the patient's symptoms improved, and marked decrease of the syrinx was seen on postoperative MRI. The pathophysiology, the role of preoperative diagnostic methods especially serial myelo-CT, and the contmporary management modalities for posttraumatic syringomyelia is reviewed along with the pertinent literature.