脊髄円錐部脊髄腫瘍のMRI診断

Diagnosis of Spinal Cord Tumors of the Conus by MRI

　脊髄円錐部腫瘍のMRI所見について検討し，その特徴について報告した．脊髄円錐部に存在する脊髄腫瘍のうち，病理組織診断の確定した神経鞘腫4例，上衣腫2例，神経線維腫，血管芽細胞腫，血管腫，悪性リンパ腫それぞれ1例の計10例を対象とした．鑑別のポイントは神経鞘腫で嚢胞形成と嚢胞壁の造影効果，粘液乳頭状上衣腫では神経鞘腫に比べ腫瘍サイズが比較的大きいこと，内部が均一なことである．神経線維腫・髄外血管腫・悪性リンパ腫はMRI所見のみでは診断困難であった．

　The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristic MRI findings in spinal cord tumors of the conus.

　Ten patients, whose lesions included 4 neurinomas, 2 ependymomas, 1 neurofibroma, and 1 hemangioblastoma, 1 hemangioma, 1malignant lymphoma and in which the histological diagnosis was established by examination of the surgical specimen, had been examined by MRI. The MRI findings in the neurinomas showed cyst formation with enhancement of the wall. Although the ependymomas were also characterized by cyst formation, the intensity of the cyst tumors was relatively homogeneous the T1, T2, and enhanced images. The characteristic finding in the hemangioma was flow void in the T2 images. No characteristic findings were identified in the other tumors.