Intraspinal tumours in children--clinical presentation

Intraspinal tumours in children are rare, the estimated average ratio of spinal to intracranial tumour in the paediatric population is 1:10. We reviewed our experience of paediatric spinal tumours over the period 1992-96. Nineteen patients presented during this time, 12 males and 7 females with the mean age of 7.8 years. The main presenting symptoms were pain, limb weakness, ataxia, sensory disturbance and spinal curvature abnormalities with a mean duration of 10 months. There was a wide variety of tumour types. All underwent a laminectomy with 8 having total tumour excision, 5 partial excision, and 6 had biopsies only. Five patients had extradural lesions and fourteen were intra-dural, four of which were extramedullary and six were intramedullary tumours. There were no major complications of surgery and only one patient had a CSF leak which was repaired. The average hospital stay was 15 days. Seven patients underwent radiotherapy and four had chemotherapy. Four patients are disease free and seven are symptom free after a mean follow-up of 2 years. Four patients died in this series with extensive diffuse tumours.