Anterior sacral meningocele

Anterior sacral meningocele



Anterior sacral meningoceles are congenital lesions that consist of a spinal fluid-filled sac in the pelvis communicating by a small neck with the spinal subarachnoid space through a defect in the sacrum. They protrude into retroperitoneal and presacral space. 1) 2).

The wall of the sac consists of two layers, an inner arachnoid membrane and outer dura mater, which extends into the retroperitoneal presacral space from the sacral spinal canal 3).


Anterior sacral meningocele was first described in 1837 as a part of neural tube defect (NTD) spectrum.


It may be associated with a syndrome like Currarino syndrome 4) which includes anorectal malformations, sacral bony defect and presacral mass; and Marfan syndrome wherein the etiology may be disorder of collagen biosynthesis and structure at the dural level 5).

Associated malformations are found:

spina bifida

spinal dysraphism

bicornuate uterus

imperforate anus 6).


1)

Villarejo F, Scavone C, Blazquez MG, Pascual-Castroviejo I, Perez-Higueras A, Fernandez-Sanchez A, Garcia Bertrand C. Anterior sacral meningocele: review of the literature. Surg Neurol. 1983 Jan;19(1):57-71. doi: 10.1016/0090-3019(83)90212-4. PMID: 6828997.
2)

Sharma V, Mohanty S, Singh DR. Uncommon craniospinal dysraphism. Ann Acad Med Singap. 1996 Jul;25(4):602-8. PMID: 8893940.
3)

Somuncu S, Aritürk E, Iyigün O, Bernay F, Rizalar R, Günaydin M, Gürses N. A case of anterior sacral meningocele totally excised using the posterior sagittal approach. J Pediatr Surg. 1997 May;32(5):730-2. doi: 10.1016/s0022-3468(97)90018-x. PMID: 9165463.
4)

CALIHAN RJ. Anterior sacral meningocele. Radiology. 1952 Jan;58(1):104-8. doi: 10.1148/58.1.104. PMID: 14883380.
5)

North RB, Kidd DH, Wang H. Occult, bilateral anterior sacral and intrasacral meningeal and perineurial cysts: case report and review of the literature. Neurosurgery. 1990 Dec;27(6):981-6. doi: 10.1097/00006123-199012000-00020. PMID: 2274142.
6)

Dahan H, Arrivé L, Wendum D, Docou le Pointe H, Djouhri H, Tubiana JM. Retrorectal developmental cysts in adults: clinical and radiologic-histopathologic review, differential diagnosis, and treatment. Radiographics. 2001 May-Jun;21(3):575-84. doi: 10.1148/radiographics.21.3.g01ma13575. PMID: 11353107.

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