Familial syringomyelia in two siblings: case report

We report on syringomyelia of the thoracic spinal cord in two sisters without a Chiari or any other malformation. In both cases syringomyelia was determined by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Spinal MRI showed a syringomyelia between T6-T8 levels in the first sibling and between T7- T9 in the second sibling. The cranio-cervical junction was normal and tonsiller ectopia was not present. Neurological examination of both sisters was normal. They did not undergo surgery as they had mild symptoms without neurological deficit and the size of the syrinx was small. Familial syringomyelia is a very rare finding and extremely rare at only the thoracic level. Genetic and environmental factors seem to be involved in familial syringomyelia.