Neuroma

An interdigital neuroma (Mortons neuroma) may occur about the plantar digital nerves, most commonly between the third and fourth toes. However, this is not a true neuroma but probably a fibrotic response occurring after trauma. In some cases the Morton's neuroma develops after entrapment of the medial or lateral plantar nerves. These lesions have persistent low signal intensity on both T1-weighted and T2-weighted spin-echo MR images, a finding that distinguishes them from true neuromas, which are of high signal intensity on T2-weighted images.

Stump neuromas may occur after limb amputation at the severed ends of major nerves. Other types of trauma also lead to development of neuromas, often attributable both to the nerve injury and to an abortive attempt at repair.

In neurofibromatosis, paraspinal neuromas sometimes grow through the intervertebral foramen into the spinal canal, leading to a dumbbell or hourglass configuration. Intracostal neuromas also occur in this disease.

Mucosal neuromas occur in familial multiple endocrine neoplasia, type IIA (Sipples syndrome).

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