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Fatty filum terminale and low-lying conus medullaris in Gollop-Wolfgang complex: a case report and review of literature

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Abstract

Background/importance

Gollop-Wolfgang complex is a rare skeletal dysplasia with only 200 cases reported in the literature. This disorder is usually associated with several extraosseous anomalies. This report describes the first case of a fatty filum terminale and a low-lying conus medullaris in a patient with this complex. A review of the current literature of the Gollop-Wolfgang complex accompanies this case, highlighting the documented extraosseous anomalies seen in this complex.

Clinical presentation

We report a case of an 18-month-old patient with Gollop-Wolfgang complex who underwent cord untethering with release of the filum terminale after extensive workup showed the presence of a dyssynergic bladder and radiological evaluation revealed a fatty filum terminale and low-lying conus medullaris.

Conclusion

Gollop-Wolfgang complex is a skeletal dysplasia usually associated with several extra skeletal anomalies. Our report describes the first case of a fatty filum terminale and low-lying conus medullaris in this complex, as well as provides an overview of the documented anomalies seen in this disorder. A multidisciplinary approach is recommended when treating these infants in order to ensure that occult manifestations of the complex are not missed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Penn State Children’s Hospital, 30 Hope Drive, Suite 1200, Building B, Hershey, PA, 1733, USA

    Cyril S. Tankam, Mallory R. Peterson, Yaw Tachie-Baffour, Samer Zammar & Elias B. Rizk

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  1. Cyril S. Tankam
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  2. Mallory R. Peterson
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  3. Yaw Tachie-Baffour
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  4. Samer Zammar
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Contributions

Cyril Tankam and Mallory R. Peterson performed the literature review, prepared the figures, and wrote the main manuscript. Yaw Tachie-Baffour, Samer Zammar, and Elias Rizk assisted in the literature review, preparation of the figures, and writing of the manuscript. All authors reviewed the manuscript and approved the document for submission.

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Correspondence to Cyril S. Tankam.

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I declare that the authors have no competing interests as defined by Springer, or other interests that might be perceived to influence the results and/or discussion reported in this paper. None of the authors have any disclosures or conflicts of interest.

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Tankam, C.S., Peterson, M.R., Tachie-Baffour, Y. et al. Fatty filum terminale and low-lying conus medullaris in Gollop-Wolfgang complex: a case report and review of literature. Childs Nerv Syst 39, 517–526 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-022-05679-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-022-05679-1

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