Abstract
BackgroundCysticercosis is a parasitic disease caused by the larval stage of Taenia Solium. Involvement of the central nervous system by this tapeworm is endemic in developing countries. However, isolated spinal involvement by Taenia Solium is uncommon and having clinical presentation of Brown-Séquard syndrome is even rarer.Case presentationA 43-year-old male who came to the emergency department with clinical presentation of complete Brown-Séquard syndrome. Computed tomography scan of the brain was normal. Magnetic resonance imaging of the thoracic spine revealed an intramedullary mass of the spinal cord at C-7/T-l level. Patient underwent surgery that revealed a cystic lesion and was resected. Histopathological report confirmed the diagnosis of neurocysticercosis. Postoperatively, oral steroid therapy and a four week course of albendazol were administered.ConclusionsIntramedullary neurcysticercosis represents a diagnostic challenge and should be considered in intramedullary lesions in settings where Taenia solium is endemic. Clinical, pathophysiological and diagnostic aspects of spinal cord intramedullary neurocysticercosis are discussed.
Highlights
Cysticercosis is a parasitic disease caused by the larval stage of Taenia Solium
Cysticercosis is caused by the encysted larvae stage of the pork tapeworm Taenia Solium [1]
Clinical syndromes related to this parasite are divided into neurcysticercosis and extra-neural cysticercosis
Summary
Intramedullary neurocysticercosis represents a diagnostic challenge and should be considered for intramedullary lesions. Though various therapeutic options exist for spinal neurocysticercosis, the rarity of spinal involvement has precluded the evolvement of definite guidelines. Medical treatment alone can be considered in selected cases. Consent The patient gave written informed consent for the publication of the accompanying images and this report. The authors are available for any clarification. The publication was approved by the ethic committee of the San Juan de Dios General Hospital. Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Authors’ contributions EMSN contributed to the data acquisition, design, redaction and analysis of the publication. RPS contributed to the data acquisition, redaction and approval of the publication. FJES contributed to the redaction, analysis and revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript
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