Hemorrhagic Paraganglioma of the Cauda Equina: Case Report and Review of the Magnetic Resonance Imaging Features

Hemorrhagic Paraganglioma of the Cauda Equina: Case Report and Review of the Magnetic Resonance Imaging Features

Cauda equina paragangliomas are rare tumors and are known to be highly vascular. Most patients are middle-aged adult males that present with non-specific symptoms of chronic lumbar back pain. We report a patient with acute cauda equina syndrome caused by a hemorrhagic cauda equina paraganglioma. Intraoperatively a hypervascular intradural extramedullary tumor was encountered and completely excised by first performing circumferential microsurgical devascularization.