Lumbar Lipoma and Occult Lumbar Dysraphism [Article in English]

Abstract

Lipomas in the form of a human tail in the lumbar region with occult spinal dysraphism constitute a very rare dysraphic spi­nal abnormality, which is seldomseen in daily practice. This clinical entity commonly presents with local changes alone, and usually lacks neurological manifestations, although life-long risk of neurological deterioration is not negligible. Surgical in­tervention for asymptomatic lipoma of the conus medullaris has been an area of controversy, primarily due to the scarcity of detailed studies regarding the natural history of this disor­der. Nevertheless, the presence of esthetic or functional disor­ders warrants surgical removal of these superficial masses. We report the case of a 10-year-old boy seen initially as an infant because of a lumbar appendage that caused only esthetic con­cern. At that time, the child’s parents refused surgical removal of the malformation. Ten years afterwards, the patient himself presented our outpatient clinic requesting the removal of his esthetic defect.