Generally, there are two forms of<unk> : congenital and acquired.<unk>  is generally a chronic disorder that occurs over time, resulting in muscular atrophy. Acquired<unk>  can be caused by a serious physical trauma to the body such as in a road traffic accident.<unk>  can also be classified into communicating and noncommunicating forms. Communicating typically occurs due to lesions on the foramen magnum and noncommunicating occurring due to other spinal cord diseases. Congenital The first major form relates to an abnormality of the brain called an Arnold–Chiari malformation or Chiari malformation. This is the most common cause of<unk> , where the anatomic abnormality, which may be due to a<unk> all posterior fossa, causes the lower part of the cerebellum to protrude from its normal location in the back of the head into the cervical or neck portion of the spinal canal. A syrinx may then develop in the cervical region of the spinal cord. Here, symptoms usually begin between the ages of 25 and 40 and may worsen with straining, called a valsalva maneuver, or any activity that causes cerebrospinal fluid pressure to fluctuate suddenly. Some patients, however, may have long periods of stability. Some patients with this form of the disorder also have hydrocephalus, in which cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the skull, or a condition called arachnoiditis, in which a covering of the spinal cord—the arachnoid membrane—is inflamed. Some cases of<unk>  are familial, although this is rare. Acquired The second major form of<unk>  occurs as a complication of trauma, meningitis, hemorrhage, a tumor, or arachnoiditis. Here, the syrinx or cyst develops in a segment of the spinal cord damaged by one of these conditions. The syrinx then starts to expand. This is sometimes referred to as noncommunicating<unk> . Symptoms may appear months or even years after the initial injury, starting with pain, weakness, and sensory impairment originating at the site of trauma. The primary symptom of post-traumatic<unk>  (often referred to using the abbreviation of PTS) is pain, which may spread upward from the site of injury. Symptoms, such as pain, numbness, weakness, and disruption in temperature sensation, may be limited to one side of the body.<unk>  can also adversely affect sweating, sexual function, and, later, bladder and bowel control. A typical cause of PTS would be a car accident or similar trauma involving a whiplash injury. What can make PTS difficult to diagnose is the fact that symptoms can often first appear long after the actual cause of the syrinx occurred (e.g., a car accident occurring and then the patient first experiencing PTS symptoms such as pain, loss of sensation, and reduced ability on the skin to feel varying degrees of hot and cold a number of months after the car accident).
Syringomyelia
Diastematomyelia
Posterior cord syndrome
Occipital horn syndrome
Surfer's myelopathy
Vascular myelopathy
Central cord syndrome
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis