Cobb syndrome: A rare cause of paraplegia

Cobb syndrome is an exceedingly rare clinical condition defined by the presence of a vascular skin nevus and an angioma in the spinal canal at the same metamere. We report the case of a 14-year-old boy who presented with sudden onset paraplegia. Physical examination showed port-wine stains over buttock and thigh. Magnetic resonance (MR) angiogram of the dorso-lumbar spine revealed a large arteriovenous malformation (AVM) at D11-D12 to L2-L3 levels. These concurrent findings led to the diagnosis of Cobb's syndrome. The patient received orally administered prednisolone therapy and underwent endovascular embolization of spinal angioma. Cobb's syndrome is a rare disease entity and literature search revealed only a few case reports and series mentioning this condition to date. The importance lies in the recognition that cutaneous vascular lesions may clue to an associated spinal cord angioma or AVM that may lead to weakness or paralysis.