[Cholesterol emboli with neurologic manifestation in the spinal cord]

A 71-year old man presented with a progressive chronic paraparesis combined with inflammatory biological features including hypereosinophilia and an aneurysm of the abdominal aorta. Disseminated cholesterol embolization of arterioles was evidenced by the identification of cholesterol crystals in biopsies of the quadriceps muscle and of an iliac lymph node. Despite the lack of post mortem study of the spinal cord, the presentation was highly suggestive of cholesterol emboli in the spinal arteries. Only ten documented cases have been reported.