Diabetes insipidus secondary to penetrating spinal cord trauma: case report and literature review

Case report. To present a case of central diabetes insipidus (CDI) that developed after a gunshot injury to the thorax and thoracic spinal cord and to discuss the disease process in light of the relevant literature. Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) abnormalities may develop after spinal trauma and/or surgery. Although there are published reports of inappropriate ADH syndrome arising in this clinical picture, CDI is rare. A 33-year-old woman with hemopneumothorax and a gunshot wound to her thoracic spine was treated with chest tube drainage. No surgery was performed for the spinal injury. The patient was paraplegic on admission and rapidly developed excessive urine output. Testing revealed that her serum ADH level was low, consistent with CDI. Desmopressin acetate nasal spray was the prescribed treatment. The patient responded well to the desmopressin acetate spray. CDI is a complicated hormonal disorder characterized by excessive urine output. It is typically linked to an abnormality in the hypothalamohypophyseal axis that markedly reduces ADH production. The most common inciting causes are craniocerebral trauma, brain tumor and/or surgery, and central nervous system infection. Although uncommon, CDI should be considered when a spinal trauma patient develops excessive urine output.