Acute motor axonal neuropathy in childhood: clinical and MRI findings

Clinical and radiologic findings in a child with acute motor axonal neuropathy are reported. A 16-year-old boy with mild cerebral palsy presented 1 week after an upper respiratory tract infection with low back pain, ascending weakness, and areflexia. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) examination revealed albuminocytological dissociation. Serial electromyograms (EMGs) with nerve conduction velocity (NCV) studies revealed findings of motor axonal neuropathy. Spine MRI revealed enhancement of the cauda equina. Acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN) may be an underrecognized cause of acute flaccid paralysis, and to our knowledge no pediatric cases have been reported in the United States. MRI findings have not been reported previously.