Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2023 Jul 8;15(7):e41549.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.41549. eCollection 2023 Jul.

Man-in-the-Barrel Syndrome Secondary to Idiopathic Acute Anterior Spinal Artery Infarction

Sarah Baroud  1 , Fatima Al Zaabi  1 , Waqar H Gaba  1 , Mohammed El Lahawi  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Man-in-the-Barrel Syndrome Secondary to Idiopathic Acute Anterior Spinal Artery Infarction

Sarah Baroud et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

A 52-year-old female presented to our hospital with an acute history of isolated bilateral arm weakness. An MRI of the cervical spine confirmed an acute anterior spinal artery infarction. Further investigations to determine a specific etiology were unremarkable, leading to a diagnosis of idiopathic anterior spinal artery infarction consistent with Man-in-the-Barrel syndrome.

Keywords: acute anterior spinal artery infarction; brachial diplegia; cervical spine disorders; man-in-the-barrel syndrome; owl's eyes sign.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. MRI of the cervical spine (axial T2 view) showing bilateral high T2 signal intensity known as 'Owl's eyes'
Figure 2
Figure 2. MRI of the cervical spine, sagittal T2 view showing degenerative disc changes in C5-C6 without cord compression
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bodle J, Emmady PD. StatPearls [Internet] Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022. Man in a barrel syndrome. - PubMed
    1. "Person-in-the-barrel" syndrome: a case report of bilateral arm paresis due to vasculitis with a review of pathological mechanisms. Kesserwani H. Cureus. 2021;13:0. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Man-in-the-barrel syndrome: history and different etiologies. Orsini M, Mello M, Nascimento O, et al. Rev Neurocienc. 2009;17:138–140.
    1. Gender analysis of 'man-in-the-barrel' syndrome: is 'person-in-the-barrel' a more adequate term? Soares C, Ferreira D, Araújo R. Eur J Neurol. 2021;28:341–343. - PubMed
    1. 'Man-in-the-barrel' syndrome: a case report of bilateral arm paresis following cardiac arrest. Riyaz R, Usaid SA, Arram N, Khatroth S, Shah P, Shrestha AB. Ann Med Surg (Lond) 2023;85:435–438. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources