Dissociated motor loss in forearm and hand muscles: case report

A 27-year-old man was diagnosed with the unilateral dissociated motor loss of the forearm and hand muscles. His medical image findings were completely different from those of other reports such as so called flexion myelopathy (abnormal anterior displacement of the dura mater and the spinal cord against the posterior wall of the vertebral body in neck flexion). Our patient demonstrated lateral shift of the spinal cord to the right attributed to high thoracic scoliosis and disk herniation at the level of C6-7. The right side of the spinal cord was compressed between the disk herniation and the right lamina. In this condition, circulatory insufficiency probably occurred and resulted in damage of the anterior horn, which was selectively vulnerable for ischemia in the spinal cord.