Infantile spinal cord tumour presenting as hydrocephalus

ABSTRACT

Although relatively rare, the association of spinal cord tumours with hydrocephalus and increased intracranial pressure, normal pressure hydrocephalus and benign intracranial hypertension is a well-recognised phenomenon. Usually, the hydrocephalus becomes apparent or is discovered after the diagnosis of an intraspinal tumour. In rarer circumstances, hydrocephalus is the presenting feature and evidence of spinal cord dysfunction appears subsequently. In this report, we present the case of an infant who was treated for communicating hydrocephalus of undetermined aetiology. Eleven months later, a malignant astrocytoma of the cervical spinal cord was diagnosed