Solitary bone cyst of the cervical spine--case report

A 63-year-old female presented with an extremely rare solitary bone cyst in the spine involving the C-5 vertebral body. Computed tomography showed an air-density area inside the cyst, without postcontrast enhancement. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a low-intensity lesion on both T1- and T2-weighted images. At surgery, the cyst cavity contained no fluid. Histological examination of the surgical specimen revealed that the cyst wall was lined by a thin fibrous membrane. This rare bone cyst may have originated from a defect in the epiphyseal plate of the vertebral body.