Dural ectasia and the Marfan syndrome

The not-uncommon spinal abnormalities associated with Marfan's syndrome rarely undergird clinical problems, and neurological features accompanying such bone abnormalities are rare. In such unusual circumstances it is a widened vertebral canal that attracts attention: the substrate of such widening is dural ectasia with bone erosion, presumably due to hydraulic forces operating via the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). When neural symptoms or findings do occur they may be related to stretching and traction mechanisms. This study of a symptomatic patient defined with reasonable clarity the abnormal anatomy, and some neurological symptom relief was achieved by attempting to alter the CSF dynamics. The relevant literature has been sampled to elucidate the condition.