A patient who was diagnosed with arachnoid web due to weakness in the limb: a case report

¹Department of Emergency Medicine, Jeju National University Hospital, Jeju, Korea
²Department of Emergency Medicine, Jeju National University College of Medicine, Jeju, Korea
³Department of Medical Education, Jeju National University College of Medicine, Jeju, Korea
⁴Institute for Medical Science of Jeju National University, Jeju, Korea

Correspondence

Youngjoon Kang ,Tel: 064-717-1903, Fax: 064-717-1097, Email: lovesuhi@hanmail.net,

Received: August 28, 2020; Revised: January 12, 2021 Accepted: March 2, 2021. Published online: June 30, 2021.

ABSTRACT

Arachnoid web is a very rare disease that occurs when the normal flow of cerebrospinal fluid is disturbed due to abnormal formation of the arachnoid membrane in the arachnoid space. Consequently, symptoms appear in the form of various myelopathies, such as loss of strength and sensation in the upper and lower extremities, or bladder control disorders. In general, surgical treatment can be considered if symptoms are exhibited. Arachnoid web requires a high consideration of appropriate diagnosis and treatment methods. However, due to its extremely rare occurrence in actual clinical practice, it is difficult to differentiate from other diseases such as herniated intervertebral disc or subdural tumor causing spinal myelopathy. This would effectively lead to a completely different direction of treatment. To date, there have been no case reports of Arachnoid web in Korea, except for collecting and reporting the focal anterior displacement of the thoracic spine, which is a similar lesion in the spinal cord. This article therefore provides information through case reports and literature review.

Key words: Arachnoid web; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Thoracic vertebrae; Anterior displacement