Parsonage-Turner Syndrome: an Uncommon Cause of Shoulder Pain Diagnosed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging

SG Jakhere, D Yadav, P Narekar

Hong Kong J Radiol 2010;13:205-8

The clinical presentation of Parsonage-Turner syndrome often entails acute-onset shoulder pain, which may be confused with other entities such as rotator cuff tear, acute calcific tendonitis, adhesive capsulitis, cervical spondylosis, peripheral compressive

neuropathy, acute poliomyelitis, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Although it is a well-known entity, its appearance on magnetic resonance imaging has rarely been described. Radiologists should be familiar with this entity as radiological features might provide the first clue to the diagnosis. Multiple aetiological factors have been proposed to explain the underlying mechanism including a post-viral or autoimmune process, drugs, injections, burns and anaesthesia, though the exact pathogenesis still remains unclear. We present a case of a patient referred for magnetic resonance imaging of the shoulder to evaluate shoulder pain who was finally diagnosed to have Parsonage-Turner syndrome on the basis of the classical magnetic resonance imaging findings.

中文摘要

臂叢神經炎：用磁共振成像診斷肩膊痛的一個罕見病因

SG Jakhere、D Yadav、P Narekar

臂叢神經炎起病通常為急性肩膊疼痛，所以很容易與其他疾病混淆，如肩旋轉袖撕裂裂、急性鈣化性肌腱炎、黏連性關節囊炎、頸椎病、周邊神經壓迫性病變、急性脊髓灰質炎及肌萎縮性脊髓側索硬化症。雖然臂叢神經炎是一種已知的病，文獻中很少提及此病的磁共振影像。由於這些影像可能會為診斷提供第一線索，放射科醫生應熟識這些影像特徵。雖然至今仍未能準確掌握其發病機制，但亦曾提出多個不同的病因去解釋這病，包括病毒感染後或自身免疫過程、藥物、注射、燒傷和麻醉。本文報告一名有肩膊痛的病人被轉介接受磁共振成像檢查，最終因其典型的磁共振影像而被診斷出患有臂叢神經炎。