Clinical features of spinal tumors in children and adolescents
YANG Hao-fei
LIN Song
CHEN Song-feng
PU Fei-fei
MA Xiu-cai
SHAO Zeng-wu
Abstract：Objective To study clinical features, diagnosis, treatment strategy and prognosis of spinal tumors in children and adolescents.Methods Thirty-ifve patients were retrospectively investigated from May 2003 to October 2013. The age of patients ranged from 3 to 18 years. Clinical medical history, radiographic records and follow-up data were reviewed retrospectively.Results There were 26 males and 9 females. The mean age was 13.6 years. There were 29 cases of benign tumors and 6 malignant tumors. Tumor locations: 14 cases were of cervical vertebrae, 14 thoracic vertebrae, 13 lumbar vertebrae, 2 sacral vertebrae. Period from onset of symptoms to diagnosis: 14.3 months in benign tumors, 2.3 months in malignant tumors, average 12.3 months. Main manifestations: pain (n=31, 88.6% ) and neurologic involvement ( n=20, 57.1% ). Twenty-seven cases underwent surgical treatment, while 2 cases radiotherapy alone. The mean follow-up period was 4.7 years. Pain was mostly relieved or disappeared after the treatment, and neurologic symptoms were also reduced or disappeared in benign tumors. Three cases of malignant tumors died, and 1 case of them was with lung metastasis.Conclusions Incidence of spinal tumors in children and adolescents is lower. Benign and primary tumors are more common with main manifestations of pain and neurologic dysfunction. Imaging examination is very important for diagnosis and proper treatment plan. Surgical treatment is mostly applied, while spinal stability reconstruction is a key step and intractable problem.
Keywords：ChildAdolescentSpine‘Bone neoplasmsPainSurgical proceduresoperative
Publication Date：2015-01-01
Online Publishing Date：2025-08-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：6( 742-747 )