Objective and importance: Pregnancy-related vertebral hemangioma compressive myelopathy is a rare occurrence that tends to arise in the upper thoracic and lower cervical spine, peaks during the third trimester, and remits after parturition. Whether corticosteroid receptors play a role in the pathogenesis of these lesions is unknown. Most of these lesions have been managed with posterior decompression.
Clinical presentation: A 29-year-old woman presented with acute-onset lower-extremity weakness and sensory loss immediately after parturition.
Intervention: We used a retropleural approach for anterior decompression and fusion, followed by radiation therapy. Immunohistochemical analysis of estrogen and progesterone receptor expression was performed.
Conclusion: We report an unusual case of lower thoracic postpartum vertebral hemangioma compressive myelopathy caused by a parturition-related compression fracture. Results of tests for corticosteroid receptors were negative, which implicated a hemodynamic rather than hormonal cause for disease progression.