Surgical Management of Retro-Odontoid Cystic Mass with Cervicomedullary Compression

Figure 1

Preoperative MR brain T1-weighted sagittal image demonstrates a cystic mass arising at the C1-C2 level extending cephalad traversing the foramen magnum. The mass insinuates between the intradural segments of the vertebral arteries bilaterally causing severe compression at the cervicomedullary junction with the associated cystic area in the caudal medulla.