Glossary

Spinal cord injury without radiographic abnormality – a condition seen in infants and children where a child presents with a history of recent, significant trauma, a major neurological deficit consistent with a spinal cord injury but radiographs fail to demonstrate a spinal abnormality. This condition was defined in the pre-MRI era and most children with this condition will demonstrate a paraspinal soft tissue abnormality on MR scanning that predicts spinal instability. It was coined by Dachling Pang (J Trauma 29(5):654-64, 1989) to describe a patient with signs of a spinal cord injury but normal plain radiographs and tomographic scans of the spine.

Scoliosis – an abnormal lateral curvature to the spine.  In general usage it is commonly used to describe any abnormal curvature of the spine but, strickly speaking, it should only be used in discussing lateral curvature.

Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy – a surgical procedure where a portion of the sensory nerves (dorsal) are cut (rhizotomy). The selective refers to the fact the there is a selection process to determine which of the nerve fibers are cut and which are preserved.

Subependymal giant cell astrocytoma

Subependymal giant cell astrocytomas

Subependymal nodules – seen in patients with tuberous sclerosis

Subependymal Nodules

Sensory Evoked Potential

Sensory Evoked Potentials

Subependymal giant cell tumors – term used by some in place of SEGA (subependymal giant cell astrocytoma) to describe tumors arising in subependymal tissue around the foramen of Monro in children with tuberous sclerosis. The rationale for its use is the finding of cell types other than astrocytomas in the tumor.