Staged Operation of a Dumbbell-Shaped Schwannoma in High Cervical Region: Case Report

The authors report a case of high cervical giant dumbbell-shaped schwannoma. A 43-year-old man admitted for the evaluation of gait disturbance and hypesthesia below C2 dermatome for six years. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a large enhancing dumbbell-shaped mass, extending from carotid sheath to craniovertebral junction, and in C1, C2 spinal canal, which causes significant compression of the cervical cord posteriorly. we decided to do staged operations. First, the intraspinal portion was removed in order to decompress the spinal cord from the tumor. Second, residual extraspinal tumor was removed via high cervical retropharyngeal approach. The patient recovered well without any neurological deficit.