Intraspinal choristoma in the lumbar region: A case report

Intraspinal choristoma is a relatively uncommon intervertebral canal tumor. Prior to our reports, only 2 cases of intraspinal choristoma had been reported. Because this disease is not common and looks like a mass of fatty tissue on the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), intraspinal choristoma can be easily misdiagnosed as teratomas or lipomas (like the case of this article presenting) without a pathology report. So if a lumber intraspinal lesion is discovered in a clinical examination, intraspinal choristoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis. We present a case of intraspinal choristoma that is unlike any other reported case. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 35-year-old woman with left lower extremity hypoesthesia and burning-like pain in the lumbar region for 1 month visited the local hospital for plain lumbar spine MRI. The patient was diagnosed with a lumbar space-occupying lesion. A second plain lumbar spine MRI scan and a MRI scan with enhancement were performed in our hospital to confirm the presence of a congenital lipoma in the spinal canal. A postoperative biopsy of the lumbar spinal mass indicated that the mass was an intraspinal choristoma located in the spinal canal. DIAGNOSIS: Intraspinal choristoma. INTERVENTION: The lesion was surgically removed, and follow-up plain and enhanced MRI images of the patient’s lumbar spine were obtained. OUTCOMES: After surgery, the patient no longer experienced the burning pain in her lumbar region or the left lower extremity hypoesthesia when the patient was discharged. And there was no evidence of recurrence 2 years after the surgery. LESSONS: The MRI presentation of intraspinal choristoma is similar to intraspinal lipoma. Therefore, a pathological assessment is critical to provide an accurate diagnosis.