Rare and Unusual Case of Intramedullary Spinal Cord Neurofibroma

A previously healthy eighteen year old female presented with interscapular pain of 6 months duration. She also experienced progressive decline in her ability to perform fine motor skills such as handwriting as well as deficiency in coordination and motor strength. Imaging of the spine revealed a well demarcated intradural intramedullary lesion in the central portion of the cervical spinal cord. Based on radiographic appearance a diagnosis of ependymoma was favored. To prevent further motor and sensory decline, surgical intervention was deemed appropriate. Osteoplastic laminoplasty of C6 and C7 was performed with microsurgical resection of the lesion using concurrent somatosensory and motor evoked potentials. Subsequent microscopic assessment of the resected mass showed a benign nerve sheath tumor, further classified as neurofibroma. Intradural intramedullary neurofibromas are extremely rare neoplasms with only a handful of reported cases. In this report we would like to share our experience with this entity.