Summary
Ante- and post-mortem MRI and detailed pathological examination were performed in a patient with a typical acute traumatic central cord syndrome (ATCCS) after a minor hyperextension injury to the neck who died 60 h later from heart failure. T2-weighted MRI showed a central hyperintense area at C3–4. There were disc protrusions, but no vertebral fracture or displacement. Histopathology disclosed severe axonal swelling and oedema in the dorsolateral fasciculi and, to a lesser degree, in the dorsal columns. In addition, an area of recent necrosis was found in the right anterior horn at C4–5. These findings suggest that the pathological hallmark of typical ATCCS is mechanical axonal disruption at a segmental level, but that more severe trauma may be accompaniedby tissue destruction.
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Martin, D., Schoenen, J., Lenelle, J. et al. MRI-pathological correlations in acute traumatic central cord syndrome: case report. Neuroradiology 34, 262–266 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00588177
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00588177