Definition
The sign of Lhermitte is a sensation of electric discharge, caused by the bending of the head, which spreads from the base of the neck along the vertebral column.
This symptom is an expression of marked marrow suffering, due to the involvement of the posterior spinal cords.
Following movements of flexion and extension of the cervical tract of the spine, this sort of shock can also extend to the lower limbs and, sometimes, can also spread to the upper limbs.
The Lhermitte sign is frequently found in multiple sclerosis, due to the presence of demyelinating lesions and plaques at the cervical level.
This sensation of electric discharge can also be symptomatic of some degenerative processes involving the spinal cord, such as spondylotic myelopathy, cervical stenosis and complications of cervicoarthrosis.
Lhermitte's sign can also occur in subjects who have had a cervical distortion (whiplash).
Possible Causes * of Lhermitte's Sign
- Cervical osteoarthritis
- Cervical whiplash
- myelopathy
- Multiple sclerosis
- spondylolisthesis
- Cervical spondylosis
- Cervical stenosis
- Spinal stenosis
