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Radiologically significant terminal syringomyelia affects the clinical presentation of tethered cord syndrome, by increasing or inducing neurological deficits. Better clinical outcomes after syrinx decompression emphasize the importance of the recognition and treatment of this pathological condition.

Object Current use of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging has led to increased awareness of the frequency of terminal syringomyelia in patients with tethered cord syndrome. However, that the surgical treatment of terminal syringomyelia is necessary remains unclear. In this study the authors attempted to assess the clinical impact, if any, brought after syrinx decompression on the clinical outcome of tethered cord syndrome. Methods They randomly assigned 30 cases of pediatric tethered cord into two treatment groups: those in whom an untethering procedure was performed (Group I) and those in whom this procedure was combined with syrinx decompression (Group II). The 1-year follow-up clinical results obtained in the two groups, in correlation with MR imaging findings, were compared to evaluate the benefit of added syrinx drainage. Clinical follow-up evaluation revealed that surgical drainage of the syrinx, when combined with spinal cord untethering, resulted in better outcomes in terms of resolution of sensory deficits (p = 0.036) and bladder dysfunction (p = 0.05). The improvement in clinical outcome correlated with the radiologically documented resolution of the syrinx cavity; however, response rates of symptoms differed for each tethering subgroup. Conclusions Preliminary results of this study indicated that terminal syringomyelia should be considered as a comorbidity that contributes to the clinical outcome of patients with tethered cord syndrome. A better clinical outcome is achieved following successful decompression of the syrinx in addition to untethering the spinal cord. These findings emphasize the importance of recognizing, evaluating, and treating this pathological entity.

Background: Re-stenosis and a consequent need for revision surgery are the most common problems in the follow-up period following endoscopic modification of the Lothrop procedure.Method: This paper reports a new technique for reconstructing and resurfacing of the posterior frontal recess bone for prevention of re-stenosis.Results: A 46-year-old man presented with a frontal sinus osteoma, and treatment featured an endoscopic modification of the Lothrop procedure. A vascularised, posteriorly based, septal mucosal flap was used in reconstruction. There have been no reported issues over 24 months of follow up.Conclusion: The use of a nasoseptal flap seems feasible to reduce scarring and recurrence of (common) frontal recess stenosis after a Draf III operation.