Objective: Cervical dystonia in children is rare compared to adults (1), and is often of sequelae or genetic origin (1). The objective of our work is to highlight the importance of spinal imaging to rule out an acquired cause, even if rare, such as cervical disc calcifications in children.

Background: Intervertebral disc calcifications in children are a rare condition whose etiopathogenesis remains unknown (2), often manifesting between the ages of 6 and 10 years (3) with neck pain, with or without torticollis (3, (4). The prognosis is favorable with anti-inflammatory medication, except in cases of serious neurological complications secondary to calcification migration (5).

Method: We report the case of a 4-year-old girl presenting with paroxysmal torticollis and cervical discomfort that had been developing for 6 months.

The neurological examination was normal except for paroxysmal left-sided torticollis, which was sometimes painful.

Results: A cervical spine scan revealed benign-appearing intradiscal calcifications at C5-C6 and D4-D5 (Picture 1).

Conclusion: Dystonia in children is often generalized and of genetic or sequelae origin; it is rarely focal, requiring the search for an acquired cause such as cervical disc calcifications.

Picture 1: Intradiscal calcifications.

References: (1) Nathalie Dorison, Julie Bonheur, Vincent d’Hardemare, Laurent Goetz. La dystonie de l’enfant :du diagnostic à la prise en charge. Actualités, Neuropédiatrie, Parkinson et mouvements anormaux.27ème rencontres de neurologie. 30 avril 2021.
(2) G. Harvet a, L. De Pontual a,*, B. Neven c, P. Mary a, E. Letamendia Richard a,M. Nathanson a, N. Sellier b, J. Gaudelus a. Paediatric intervertebral calcifications: two cases report and review of the literature. Archives de pédiatrie 11 (2004) 1457–1461.
(3) F.Diard. Calcifications discales idiopathiques. Siences directes.2005.
(4) Eitel Igor Kouamo1,&, Merouane Nour1, Jean Marie Gennari, Jean Marc Guillaume1, Elie Choufani1, Thierry Merrot1, Jean Pierre Alessandrini1, Kathia Chaumoitre2, Michel Panuel2, Naman Doumbouya3, Patrice Guemaleu3. Case study of two children with intervertebral disc calcifications. Pan African Medical Journal. 2016; 25:34 doi:10.11604/pamj.2016.25.34.10543
(5) Christèle Renault. Calcifications discales chez l’enfant. Description de quatre cas cliniques et revue de la littérature. Ouvrage 1996.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/paroxismal-torticollis-revealing-cervical-disc-calcifications-in-a-child-about-a-case/