CASE REPORT   

Minerva Pediatrica 2001 August;53(4):367-72

Copyright © 2001 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English, Italian

True tail dorsal-lumbar: malformation or ancestral remaining?

Galizia G.

The case of a healthy newborn presenting a dorsal-lumbar cutaneous appendage is reported. The appendage was excised by ligature. This appendage was not associated with dysraphism or other malformations. It was analysed histologically and then defined as a so called ''true tail''. Although it was been expressed a lot of hypotheses, the etiology of this finding remains disputed. The embryology of malformation and its non identification between known-syndromes is showed. The difference between ''true tails'' and ''not-true tails'' is discussed. The conclusion is drawn that for its clinical and histological aspect this malformation may be included in ''true tails''.