SPINAL INTRAMEDULLARY CYSTICERCOSIS

Background and purpose. - Cysticercosis is the most common parasitic d isease affecting the central nervous system. Although it is still very rare in Europe, the frequency will increase due to the influx of immi grants from the endemic areas and increasing trips in these countries. Spinal intramedullary cysticercosis is an uncommon manifestation of n eurocysticercosis. Clinical presentation. - We report a case of pure i ntramedullary cysticercosis in a young white French girl, presenting a s a progressive paraplegia with a cystic lesion in T4 on MRI. The diag nosis was made only after surgery by pathological examination. Conclus ions. - A preoperative diagnosis of spinal intramedullary cysticercosi s must be suspected not only in an endemic area in the presence of mul tiple soft tissue calcifications and segmental lesions revealed by mye lography or MRI studies, but also for all cystic lesion of central ner vous system even in no endemic area. Surgery is the unique treatment w hich can be used for spinal intramedullary cysticercosis and with the use of the microsurgical techniques for medullar surgery the outcome i s not as dismal as reported earlier.