Amphiphysin-positive paraneoplastic myelitis and stiff-person syndrome

Finding the underlying etiology of transverse myelitis (TM) can be challenging, as several disorders, including multiple sclerosis (MS), neuromyelitis optica, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, postvaccine myelitis, Sjögren disease, neurosarcoidosis, infectious myelopathies, or idiopathic TM, may be causative. Paraneoplastic myelopathy, another differential diagnosis, is associated with a broad range of neoplasms and bears a severe risk to develop disability. Stiffperson syndrome (SPS) can occur as a result of some neoplasms and is characterized by skeletal muscle rigidity and spasms. We present the case of a patient with suspected MS who eventually was diagnosed with paraneoplastic TM and SPS, both associated with antibodies to amphiphysin.