Magnetic resonance imaging
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Thirty pediatric patients with spinal dysraphism were studied with magnetic resonance imaging. A variety of dysraphic anomalies were visualized, including syringohydromyelia, tethered cord, widened spinal canal, meningomyelocele, lipomyelomeningocele, lipomeningocele, intraspinal lipoma, congenital dermal sinus tract, and scoliosis. ⋯ In specific cases, T2-weighted examinations were useful in demonstrating likely regions of inflammation bordering infected sinus tracts. MRI demonstrates a wide variety of dysraphic spinal anomalies and effectively screens children for occult spinal dysraphism.