Tumoral calcinosis of the cervical spine and its association with Caffey disease in a 4-month-old boy: case report and review of the literature.

Abstract

Tumoral calcinosis (TC) is a rare condition involving large joints and rarely the spine. It is characterized by calcification and swelling of periarticular tissues. Caffey disease (CD) is defined by recurrent episodes of painful soft tissue swelling and cortical thickening of the underlying bones. It is a self-limited disease that occurs in the first year of life. We report the first association of CD and TC of the cervical spine in a 4-month-old boy. We suggest that TC occurred as a consequence of the repetitive reparative process that takes place in CD, adding the latter to the list of diseases that may secondarily produce TC.