Abnormal bony protuberance of anterior atlas causing dysphagia. A rare congenital anomaly

Study design: A Case report. Objective: To report an exceedingly rare case of dysphagia caused by abnormal bony protuberance of anterior atlas. Setting: Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine, Departments of Neurosurgery and Otorhinolaryngology. Method: Radiological examinations revealed a large anterior abnormal bony tuberance of atlas in an 11-year-old boy who complained of dysphagia of 5 years donation. Result: The anterior bony tuberance of the atlas was resected by a transoral approach. Histopathological examination of the surgical specimens showed normal bone tissue. Resection resulted in complete resolution of the dysphagia. Conclusions: Dysphagia can be caused by disorders of the cervical spine. These disorders are usually seen in elderly adults. In the pediatric population, spinal abnormality is an exceedingly rare cause of dysphagia. Abnormal inductive signals from the adjacent notocord and ventral neural tube may play role in the pathogenesis of this abnormal bony protuberance.