Herniation of calcified cervical intervertebral disc causes dissociated motor loss in a child

Abstract

Herniation of the calcified nucleus pulposus is a rare complication of intervertebral disc calcification in children. Surgical intervention is rarely indicated in the majority of such cases. This paper reports a 12-year-old boy with a calcified nucleus pulposus at C7-T1 which had ruptured into the spinal canal, causing dissociated motor loss. Anterior discectomy and fusion were performed and the patient's muscle weakness markedly improved after surgery.