Aneurysmal bone cyst of the spine with familial incidence.

Abstract

A report of two cases of aneurysmal bone cysts of the spine occurring in a father and daughter. To present an unusual finding of familial incidence of aneurysmal bone cyst and review the literature. Aneurysmal bone cysts are benign, expanding, locally aggressive lesions. Up to 20% of cases involve the spine. The cause of primary aneurysmal bone cysts remains unclear. There have been three previous reports of a familial incidence supporting the importance of a hereditary component in the cause of aneurysmal bone cysts. A 36-year-old man and a 7-year-old girl were diagnosed with aneurysmal bone cyst involving the spine by clinical manifestations, radiographic features, and histologic evaluation. The father remains recurrence- and symptom-free 6 years after primary resection. Five months after surgery, the daughter was found to have recurrent disease by magnetic resonance imaging and underwent a second procedure within 1 year of the primary resection. The occurrence of a primary aneurysmal bone cyst in two family members, occurring at adjacent vertebral levels, is suggestive of a hereditary component to the formation of primary aneurysmal bone cyst.