'Progressive cerebral palsy' or spinal cord tumor? Two cases of mistaken identity

The misdiagnosis of cerebral palsy in children with neurological impairment is relatively common, although it is particularly untenable if the child's symptoms run a progressive course. This paper reports two children with presumed 'progressive' cerebral palsy who at later evaluation were found to have intramedullary tumors of the cervical spinal cord. The report is intended to alert pediatricians to the atpyical presentation and insidiuos progression of spinal cord tumors in children. Whether or not the child has cerebral palsy, any progressive deterioration of function in the extremities, complaints of back pain, loss of sphincter control, or sensory abnormality, warrants a thorough neurological examination and specific radiological procedures to exclude the possiblility of a spinal cord tumor.