Symptomatic spinal cord compression from an intradural arachnoid cyst with associated syrinx in a child: case report

Abstract

Symptomatic intradural extramedullary arachnoid cysts in children are rare, and of the previously reported pediatric cases in the current literature, none to our knowledge were associated with a spinal cord syrinx. We describe an 8-year-old child who presented with paraparesis and regression of bowel and bladder control. An intradural extramedullary arachnoid cyst was identified on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging, with an associated spinal cord syrinx. We describe the preoperative imaging, surgical management, and clinical course of this patient, who had improvement in his paraparesis. This paper reviews relevant pediatric literature and the etiology of arachnoid cysts and associated spinal cord syrinx formation.