A rare diagnosis in emergency department: spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma

Abstract

We report a case of a 32-year-old man who presented to the emergency department (ED) with a sudden onset of paraplegia due to spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma. Although the patient had a poor neurological condition on presentation, he was successfully operated and discharged without any neurological sequel. Spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma is a rarely seen clinical entity, especially in the ED. Magnetic resonance imaging is the best choice for early diagnosis, and urgent surgical decompression is essential to prevent serious neurological deficits.