Section Editor: Sandy Cheng-Yu Chen, M.D.
Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
Figure Caption
Gorham disease, or vanishing bone syndrome, is a very rare bone disease of uncertain etiology characterized by uncontrolled proliferation of lymphatic and vascular vessels resulting in massive osteolysis. Involvement of the spine is extremely rare. Early on, CT findings can appear similar to patchy osteoporosis (see quiz image). As the disease progresses, there is increased cortical resorption and tapering of the remaining bone fragments, with eventual disappearance. MR images show vanishing of bone and uniformly low signal intensity in the involved bones on T1WI (arrows in A), whereas an increased signal intensity generally is observed in T2WI (arrows in B). Enhancement of the lesions can be seen after intravenous administration of gadolinium.