Caudal Agenesis and Associated Spinal Cord Malformations

Abstract

Caudal agenesis is a congenital spinal disorder that mainly involves the lower sacral and coccygeal segments. The minimum feature of the disease is a bone anomaly, but it may involve neural components that extend to the low thoracic level. Furthermore, the entity may be associated with various complex congenital syndromes that affect multiple systems, such as the urogenital and anorectal organs. The wide spectrum of phenotypes in caudal agenesis is largely explained by the complex embryological events surrounding secondary neurulation, which not only form the caudal end of the neural tube and caudal vertebral column but also affect the adjacent urogenital and alimentary structures.