Spinal arachnoid cyst as an infrequent cause of spinal cord compression.

Spinal arachnoid cystsare rare lesions that may produce symptoms by compressing the spinal cord or nerve roots. MRI is essential for diagnosing this entity. We retrospectively reviewed the medical charts, radiological examinations, and follow-up data of four adults with spinal arachnoid cystsdiagnosed in our center over a two-year period (2007-2009). All cystswere located in the thoracic spine. Three were dorsolateralto the spinal cord and one was ventral. Most had multiple septa but one had a single septum. Cystsize varied greatly; one cystextended through eight vertebral bodies. One patient treated expectantly died of cardiovascular problems one year after the cystwas diagnosed. The other three patients underwent laminectomyand cyst fenestration; two had clinical and imaging signs of relapse after surgery. One of the patients with a relapsed cystworsened clinically, developing syringomyeliaand requiring reintervention with shunting to the subarachnoid space. The outcome of the operation was go...