Syndrome of intramedullary gunshot wound with incomplete neurologic deficit: Case report

Abstract

A patient with a gunshot wound to the spinal cord with an incomplete neurologic deficit is presented. The neurologic examination revealed a combination of a central cord injury and the Brown-Sequard Syndrome. The authors suggest that the Brown-Sequard portion of the syndrome was caused by compression of tracts within the spinal cord caused by the mass of the bullet and the central cord injury was produced by the kinetic energy of the bullet during penetration into the spinal canal. They conclude that with incomplete neurologic lesions following gunshot wounds the bullet be removed. © 1988 by The Williams and Wilkins Co.