Diagnosis, Management, and Treatment Options: A Cervical Spine Osteochondroma Meta-Analysis

Solitary Pediatric Osteochondroma of the Spine With Cord Compression

“…Typical symptoms and signs include hypesthesia, paralysis, gait abnormality, hyperreflexia, and pathologic reflexes [5]. Although males often comprise a higher proportion of osteochondroma cases reported in the literature, this rarely yields a significant difference in the reported case series [3,6]. To date, reports of pediatric osteochondromas with cord compression are limited to specific vertebral levels [7,8] or are described in brief case series [5,9], making it difficult to discern any pattern of disease for this population.…”

“…The pathogenesis of osteochondroma remains unknown. Theories revolve around the pathologic microfractures of the epiphyseal growth plate leading to cartilaginous proliferation and endochondral ossification [3]. The cervical spine is the most common location of spinal lesions [2,10].…”

“…Our review of the current literature revealed that approximately 56% of lesions involve the cervical spine, following general trends seen for all age groups. Increased mobility of the cervical spine and a history of trauma have been proposed as contributing factors in the pathogenesis of osteochondroma [3,7]. An inciting incident may be difficult to identify, with many cases presenting years after the event.…”

“…Surgical decompression via laminectomy and laminotomy is the most common treatment strategy. Fowler et al provide a comprehensive review of surgical techniques and associated outcomes; however, the data are generalized to all age groups [3]. The need for spinal fusion should be assessed based on the level of instability following removal of the osteochondroma.…”

“…Approximately 1-9% of osteochondromas involve the spine [2][3][4]. Although lesions typically project outwards, rare exophytic expansion into the spinal canal with cord compression has been increasingly reported throughout the last decade [2,4].…”