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56. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V. (DGNC)
3èmes journées françaises de Neurochirurgie (SFNC)

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V.
Société Française de Neurochirurgie

07. bis 11.05.2005, Strasbourg

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Surgical technique and outcome in patients with diastematomyelia

Chirurgische Technik und Behandlungsergebnisse bei Patienten mit Diastematomyelie

Meeting Abstract

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  • corresponding author D. Class - Department of Neurosurgery, Katharinenhospital Stuttgart
  • M. Nadji-Ohl - Department of Neurosurgery, Katharinenhospital Stuttgart
  • R. Michilli - Department of Neurosurgery, Katharinenhospital Stuttgart
  • K. Marquardt - Department of Pediatrics, Olgahospital Stuttgart
  • N. J. Hopf - Department of Neurosurgery, Katharinenhospital Stuttgart

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie. Société Française de Neurochirurgie. 56. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e.V. (DGNC), 3èmes journées françaises de Neurochirurgie (SFNC). Strasbourg, 07.-11.05.2005. Düsseldorf, Köln: German Medical Science; 2005. Doc10.05.-11.07

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://www.egms.de/en/meetings/dgnc2005/05dgnc0143.shtml

Published: May 4, 2005

© 2005 Class et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.

Outline

Text

Objective

Diastematomyelia is a complexe and rare disease. Therefore different techniques are used for surgical treatment. We report on surgical technique and outcome following operative treatment in 10 patients with diastematomyelia, treated in a single neurosurgical unit.

Methods

10 consecutive patients (7 female and 3 male) between 5 months and 50 years of age were surgically treated for diastematomyelia. Indication for treatment was neurological deterioration due to progressive tethered cord syndrome in all patients. 6 patients were primarily treated for spina bifida, and 4 patients for other complex spinal malformations. The diastema was located in the lumbar spinal canal in 9 patients and in the thoracic spinal canal in 1 patient. One patient suffered from 2 separated lesions in the lumbar spinal canal. Surgical treatment consisted of complete resection of the diastema and associated soft tissue as well as reconstruction of the ventral and dorsal dura mater.

Results

Sufficient untethering and resection of the diastema was achieved in all treated patients. In one patient, recurrence of the diastema was documented by MRI, but didn't significantly affect the further course. In one adult patient, a CSF leak occured. Surgical revision had to be performed.

Conclusions

Complete resection of the diastema and of all associated soft tissue around the lesion was found to be important in order to achieve sufficient detethering. Resection and reconstruction of the ventral dural layer seems to be necessary to prevent recurrence of the diastema.