A multidisciplinary care unit for congenital intraspinal lipomas

Abstract

There is no need for demonstrating the necessity of multidisciplinary care units to take care of patients presenting with spina bifida. These patients have so many troubles and their troubles are sometimes so complex that coordination of treatments and determination of proper treatments needs close and long-lasting collaboration between various pediatric specialists. Such a collaboration cannot be set up, or only with great difficulties, outside large pediatric hospitals. In these multidisciplinary units, the role of the neurosurgeon is always important. For lipomas it lasts as long as the follow-up itself, because neurological deterioration in these patients is life-threatening. Theoretically, systematic removal of lipomas and untethering of the spinal cord should prevent these complications. However, in all studies, the length of follo-up is insufficient for drawing definite conclusions, especially since in this pathology the first neurological deficits may occur late in life.