Spinal Cord Injury
A 45-year-old man presents after a fall from height with back pain and bilateral lower limb weakness. Examination reveals symmetric weakness of the lower extremities, saddle anesthesia, absent ankle reflexes bilaterally, and urinary retention. He has decreased perianal sensation and reduced anal tone. MRI shows a burst fracture at L1 with retropulsion compressing the spinal cord terminus. Regarding conus medullaris syndrome:
Mark each as TRUE or FALSE
The conus medullaris is the tapered terminal end of the spinal cord, typically located at the L1-L2 ...
Clinical features of conus medullaris syndrome include: sudden onset of symptoms, bilateral and symm...
The conus is located at L4-L5; it contains lumbar segments; symptoms are always unilateral; bladder ...
Differentiating conus medullaris from cauda equina syndrome: conus lesions have sudden bilateral sym...
Management includes urgent MRI to define the lesion, high-dose steroids in acute traumatic injury (c...
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Click T (True) or F (False) for each option