Cervical spine chondroma arising from C5 right hemilamina: a rare cause of spinal cord compression. Case report and review of the literature

• Published in: Journal of neurosurgical sciences Vol. 54; no. 3; p. 113
• Main Authors: Russo, V, Platania, N, Graziano, F, Albanese, V
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Italy 01-09-2010
• Subjects: Adult; Cervical Vertebrae; Chondroma - complications; Chondroma - pathology; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Neck Pain - etiology; Spinal Cord Compression - complications; Spinal Cord Compression - etiology; Spinal Neoplasms - complications; Spinal Neoplasms - pathology; Tomography, X-Ray Computed
• ISSN: 0390-5616

Chondromas are rare primary spine tumors. Only 12 cases of chondromas located in the cervical spine have been reported in the literature up to now. The authors report a case of a cervical periosteal chondroma in a 38-year-old man presenting with neck pain and a syndrome of spinal cord compression. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a lesion that was hypo- or isointense on T1-weighted images and iso-hyperintense on T2-weighted images. Administration of Gd-DPTA resulted in margin enhancement on T1-weighted images. CT scans revealed a hyperdense calcified lesion arising from the internal surface of C5 right hemi-lamina. The patient underwent a right C5 hemi-laminectomy, with complete en-bloc removal of the lesion. The authors emphasize that early identification of the initial lesion should be coupled with total surgical resection, as a definitive treatment, in order to prevent malignant transformation.