A case of cervical intradural extramedullary mature cystic teratoma: diagnosis and management

Spinal intradural extramedullary teratoma is a rare condition that develops more commonly in children than in adults. It may be associated with spinal dysraphism. We report an exceptional case of adult-onset intradural extramedullary teratoma of the cervical spinal cord and bulbomedullary junction with no evidence of spinal dysraphism and no history of previous spinal surgery and/or lumbar puncture. The patient was a 38-year-old woman whose chief complaint was progressive installation of a tetraparesis. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a cystic tumor on both sides of the foramen magnum compressing the bulbomedullary junction. The tumor was totally surgically resected. The histopathological diagnosis was a mature teratoma.