Lumbar epidural lipomatosis in a patient with Hodgkin lymphoma

Abstract

Spinal epidural lipomatosis (SEL) is a pathological condition in which fat tissue is deposed in the spinal canal around the thecal sac in excess, causing neurological symptomatology (7, 9, 12). Fat tissue is present in our body almost everywhere. When the normal quantity is exceeded is created a pathological situation. We present a 33 old man case with fat tissue excess deposited in lumbar spine canal. The pathological history of our patient includes a nodular form of stage IA Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosed in 2011 for what he went combined radio-chemotherapy. He also has ben diagnosed with grad I obesity. In last month he presented with rapidly progressive symptoms like lower back pain, paraparesis and sphincters dysfunctions. Thoracic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) establishes a lumbar lipomatosis located in L3-S5 spinal canal. Pathology results confirm the imagistic diagnostic. Under surgery was performed a median laminectomy with fat tissue excision with good results in patient symptomatology. Cortisone chronic therapy may lead to SEL. However in our case, Hodgkin lymphoma therapy appeared to be related to cortisone therapy. Neurological symptomatically patients should be treated surgically.

Keywords

• Lumbar pain
• Lipomatosis
• Hodgkin disease
• Radio-chemotherapy complications