Extensive spinal epidural immature teratoma in an infant: case report

Abstract

Here, the authors present an extremely rare case of an extensive spinal epidural teratoma (SET) in an infant and provide a review of the cases in the literature. In this report, the authors focused on the clinical manifestation and management of extensive SET. A 64-day-old girl presented with severe dyspnea and paraparesis caused by a large thoracic mass. Imaging studies revealed that the mass originated from the epidural space of the thoracic spine and extended from C7 to L1. The tumor extended bilaterally through the intervertebral foramina and formed a large posterior mediastinal mass. The tumor was partially resected via laminotomy after an emergency thoracotomy. The remnant grade I immature teratoma grew rapidly. After a re-laminotomy and bilateral thoracotomy, the residual tumor stopped growing. However, the patient’s paraparesis improved very little, and her scoliosis progressed gradually. Therefore, SET should be included in the differential diagnosis when an infant patient with paraparesis of the lower extremities is encountered. Timely diagnosis, aggressive treatment, and close monitoring are of critical importance to successful recovery in such patients.