Background: The authors report the case of a 34-year-old man who presented with intractable hiccups. The imaging examination showed that the patient was suffering from syringomyelia associated with Chiari type I malformation.
Case descriptions: The patient underwent posterior fossa decompression combined with bilateral tonsillectomy and duroplasty. The intractable hiccups completely resolved 1 week after operation and had not recurred at 2 months after surgery. Postoperative magnetic resonance imaging showed the atrophy of the tonsils of the cerebellum and disappearance of the cavities of the spinal cord.
Conclusions: Intractable hiccups as the main symptoms of Chiari type I malformation are extremely rare in the clinic. Decompression surgery should be an appropriate method to relieve the symptoms.
Keywords: Chiari type I malformation; Decompressive surgery; Intractable hiccups.
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