Acta Medica Okayama volume72 issue1
2018-02 発行
Umakoshi, Michiari
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Yasuhara, Takao
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Toyoshima, Atsuhiko
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Sasada, Susumu
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Kusumegi, Akira
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Morimoto, Jun
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Kin, Kyohei
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Tomita, Yousuke
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Date, Isao
Department of Neurological Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
The spinal extradural arachnoid cyst is a rare entity. Obtaining the correct diagnosis and detecting the fistula location are critical for providing effective treatment. A 41-year-old man had numbness in the soles of his feet for 2 years with accompanying gait disturbance, and a defecation disorder. Computed tomography myelography performed at another hospital revealed an epidural arachnoid cyst from Th11 to L2. He received a subarachnoid-cyst shunt at the rostral part of the cyst. However, his symptoms worsened and he was admitted to our hospital. Neuroradiological investigations revealed the correct location of the fistula at the level of Th12. We performed partial removal of the cyst wall with fistula closure via right hemilaminectomy of Th11 and 12. The complete closure of the fistula was confirmed by intrathecal infusion of artificial cerebrospinal fluid through the shunt tube. The shunt tube was removed with the sutures. The patient’s symptoms improved, although numbness remained in his bilateral heels. There has been no recurrence in 15 months since the surgery. Fistula closure may work as a balanced therapeutic strategy for spinal extradural arachnoid cyst, and intrathecal cerebrospinal fluid infusion is useful for the confirmation of complete fistula closure.