Clinical manifestations and significance of post-traumatic thoracolumbar syringomyelia.

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the pathogenic mechanism and the clinical significance of post-traumatic thoracolumbar syringomyelia through reviewing the clinical manifestations.

METHODS

The data of 15 patients (14 males and 1 female, aged from 28 to 56 years, with an average of 36 years) with post-traumatic syringomyelia treated in our hospital from December 1997 to February 2002 were studied retrospectively. Two patients suffered from T11 fractures, 7 from T12 fractures and 6 from L1 fractures. There were 12 patients with burst fractures and 3 with fracture dislocations. Anterior decompression, bone graft, bone fusion and internal fixation were made on 6 patients, posterior decompression, bone graft, bone fusion and internal fixation on 1 patient, and non-surgical treatment on 8 patients.

RESULTS

Syringomyelia of the patients was diagnosed accurately with magnetic resonance imaging at 0.5-4 years after the original thoracolumbar fracture. The cavern was round in 6 cases, elliptic in 6 cases, and irregular in 3 cases. The patients also suffered from pain (80%), myodynamia attenuation in lower extremities (66.7%), aggravated spasm (46.7%), sensation loss or hypesthesia (46.7%), decreased coordinate function of lower extremities (20%) and autonomic nerve symptom (6.7%).

CONCLUSIONS

Post-traumatic thoracolumbar syringomyelia should be suspected if the patient has new neurological symptoms, such as myodynamia attenuation in lower extremities, after the neural function becomes stable for certain time.