Spinal schwannoma : scrutinizing the armamentarium of a single institute

Abstract EN

Objectives: To investigate the clinical characteristics, epidemiological features of spinal schwannomas diagnosed at a single institution.

Methods: A retrospective study carried out of all consecutives 67-patients presented with spinal schwannoma treated at the neurosurgery department in King Hussein Medical Center.

Clinical information, imaging studies, and biopsy results were compiled from all consecutive patients (all cases were included) treated in our setup over a period of 10-years from January 2006 to January 2016.

Results: Study cohort consisted of 38-females (56.71%) and 29-males (43.28%), with ages ranging from 17 to 75 years (mean: 41.45 ± 13.74 yr).

The most common initial symptom was radicular pain (46 patients, 68.65%).

The most common regions of involvement were the lumbar spine (37 patients, 55.22%), followed by cervical (16 patients, 23.88%), thoracic segments (12 patients, 17.91%) and sacral region (2 patients, 2.98%).

In the total population of 67- cases, the schwannomas were intradural extramedullary in 65-cases (97.01%) and in 2-cases it was extradural (2.98%).

Three cases (4.47%) recurred locally.

Conclusion: Spinal schwannomas are benign tumors that can cause significant neurological deficits.

Lumbar spine is the most common site of spinal schwannomas according to this study.

Surgery for spinal schwannomas usually results in excellent postoperative clinical outcomes.

Schwannoma is generally separable from the underlying nerve.

In cases of subtotal removal, there could be a recurrence