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Sacrococcygeal dimples linked to intraspinal lesions in newborns
A study has shown that newborns with sacrococcygeal dimples in the gluteal fold are more likely to also have intraspinal lesions.
Researchers retrospectively reviewed MRI photos from 103 children who presented between 2006 and 2011 with skin abnormalities. Eighty-four patients were included in the final study; mean age of patients was 11.7 months. The researchers classified the patients by whether the bottom of the sacrococcygeal dimple was visible (shallow) or not (deep).
MRI revealed that 14 patients had fibrolipoma of the terminal filum (FTF), and six of the 14 patients also had low conus. Fifty-eight patients were found to have shallow dimples, and 26 had deep dimples.
Patients with deep dimples had a significantly greater chance of having FTF than patients with shallow dimples, according to the researchers; nine patients with deep dimples exhibited FTF compared with five patients who had shallow dimples.
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.