PMC4353951_01
(a) The cystic lesion (white arrows) is seen as hypointense in T1-weighted and hyperintense in T2-weighted sagittal MRI at the T3 and T4 levels. (b) The cystic lesion (white arrows) is seen as hyperintense in T2-weighted axial MRI at the T3 and T4 levels.
gr1.jpg
PMC4353951_01_gr1.jpg
fig0005
T3-T4 neural foramen, which produced a dumbbell appearance because there were intraspinal and paraspinal components. The lesion was hypointense on T1-weighted MRI and hyperintense on T2-weighted MRI (Fig. 1a and b).
The hydatid cyst was dissected from the spinal dura, nerve root, surrounding bone, and paraspinal space, and completely removed.
gr2.jpg
PMC4353951_01_gr2.jpg
fig0010
T3-T4 partial facetectomy, dissected from the spinal dura, nerve root, surrounding bone, and paraspinal space, and completely removed (Fig. 2). The exposure showed an encapsulated destructive lesion arising from the T3-T4 neural foramen. The area was irrigated with hydrogen peroxide.
T2-weighted sagittal MRI shows that the hydatid cyst was completely removed (white arrows).
gr3.jpg
PMC4353951_01_gr3.jpg
fig0015
Follow-up examination 5 months post surgery showed that the patient's paraparesis resolved almost completely and postoperative MRI showed that the hydatid cyst had been completely removed (Fig. 3).