Syringomyelia associated with Chiari type I malformation. Case report

• Main Authors: Juan Ibrahim García Leonard, Ada Sánchez Lozano, Masleidy Valladares Valle
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Centro Provincial de Información de Ciencias Médicas. Cienfuegos 2020-12-01
• Series: Medisur
• Subjects: siringomielia; malformación de arnold-chiari; enfermedades del sistema nervioso
• Online Access: http://medisur.sld.cu/index.php/medisur/article/view/4670

Syringomyelia is a cystic cavity of the spinal cord, and is considered a progressive and degenerative condition. There are multiple and varied ways to classify it, based mainly on its origin, or on known production mechanisms. A 27-year-old patient with a four-month history of motor impairment, which began in the upper limbs and continued with clumsy gait, was presented. On physical examination, he presented paretospastic gait, quadriparesis with a predominance of weakness in the upper limbs with respect to the lower ones, as well as crural and left brachial spasticity, with right brachial hypotonia, associated with distal atrophy of both upper limbs and suspended thermal and painful hypoesthesia of the limb upper right. Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging showed a wide syringomyelic cavity in the cervical spine, with descent of the cerebellar tonsils, compatible with type I Chiari malformation. Although the association of both entities is common, progressive motor deficit in a young patient is a reason for admission or consultation rare in the Neurology Service. In these cases, decompressive treatment can decrease the size of the syringomyelic cavity.