Surfer's myelopathy

Surfer's myelopathy is a rare, non-traumatic spinal cord injury occurring in novice surfers in whom prolonged hyperextension of the back causes infarction of the artery of Adamkiewicz.

Terminology

These patients are almost always novice surfers ^1,2. However, cases of a similar syndrome have been reported with other activities involving back hyperextension, such as gymnastics ³. Thus, some authors have proposed the broader term acute hyperextension myelopathy ³.

Clinical presentation

Patients present with acute low back pain, followed shortly by bilateral leg numbness and paralysis ^1,2. 

Pathology

The disorder is a vascular ischemic myelopathy.

Radiographic features

MRI

Spinal MRI shows a longitudinally extensive, thin, central T2 hyperintense signal abnormality in the spinal cord from the midthoracic region to the conus ⁴. There is associated diffusion restriction and cord expansion in the acute stage ^4,5.

See also

• acute spinal cord ischemia syndrome
• anterior cord syndrome
• longitudinally extensive spinal cord lesion