Late onset neurogenic claudication in a case of metallic intradural ballistic fragment.

Metallic foreign bodies in the intradural location are rare. Even rarer is the absence of neurodeficit in such cases. We report a case where the patient came to the outdoor department of our hospital with symptoms of neurogenic claudication. From history the patient did not volunteer the information which was pertinent to his symptomatology. On examination he was asked about the small scar in his lumbar region. He attributed it to the subjectively insignificant trauma he had sustained when he had been trapped in a crossfire and had been hit by a fragment. The patient had been absolutely symptom free for 12 months after the event followed by 6 months of increasing claudication. X-ray and CT examination revealed the presence of a metallic foreign body in the lumbar spinal canal. Surgical exploration and removal correlated the presence. This case report substantiates the view that a patient with a foreign body in the spinal canal is always a potential candidate for surgery.