CASE REPORT article
Front. Surg.
Sec. Orthopedic Surgery
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvancing Orthopedic Surgery: unique Case Reports driving progressView all 7 articles
Gouty Tophi in the Thoracic Spinal Canal with Incomplete Paraplegia: A Case Report
Provisionally accepted
- 1Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
- 2Chengdu Pidu District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
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Gout manifesting in the spine is a relatively rare occurrence. Involvement of the lumbar spine is more common in cases of spinal gout, while reports of gouty tophi forming within the thoracic spinal canal are exceedingly rare. This article reports a case of incomplete paraplegia caused by gouty tophi in the thoracic spinal canal. The patient, a 56-year-old man, returned to normal after undergoing surgical treatment and was monitored for ten months postoperatively. This case highlights the importance of early diagnosis of spinal gout to prevent the progression of neurological symptoms. Surgical treatment for paraplegia caused by intraspinal tophi can yield favorable clinical outcomes. Increasing awareness of spinal gout and implementing effective uric acid management strategies are essential for preventing the severe consequences associated with this condition.
Keywords: Paraplegia, Spinal Canal, Gouty tophi, case report, orthopedic surgery
Received: 18 Sep 2025; Accepted: 29 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhao, Deng, Ding, Zhang and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Juncai Deng
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