Cervical neurenteric cyst and Klippel-Feil syndrome: An abrupt onset of myelopathic signs in a young patient

Abstract

Neurenteric cysts (NECs), also called enterogenous cysts or enterogenic cysts, are congenital malformative anomalies of endodermal origin that manifest with a variety of disorders, including spine anomalies. Neurenteric cysts are uncommon developmental disorders reported in 0.7%–1.3% of all spinal tumors. Klippel-Feil syndrome (KFS) defines a malformative spine disorder presenting with congenital fusion of cervical vertebrae and/or other parts of the spine. In patients with KFS, NECs are rarely reported; they may be silent for long periods of time, showing a slow progressive course or manifesting with an acute, severe neurological presentation or with fluctuating myelopathic symptoms. We report a young patient affected by KFS associated with a NEC which, in a short period of time, progressively caused myelopathic symptomatology. Surgical intervention resulted in resolution of the neurological signs. Keywords: Neurenteric cyst, Klippel-Feil syndrome, Intramedullary cyst