Association of superficial plexiform and paraspinal neurofibromas in neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1)

To the Editor: Tonsgard et al.1 performed CT imaging in 91 adult (≥16 years) NF1 patients; paraspinal neurofibromas occurred in 18.7% of patients in the chest region and in 25.3% of patients in the abdominal or pelvic region. The majority of patients were asymptomatic. We wondered whether the presence of plexiform neurofibromas that are apparent on the surface of the body could be used to identify NF1 patients who are at high risk of having paraspinal neurofibromas as well. We therefore examined the association between NF1 superficial plexiform and paraspinal neurofibromas in both the National Neurofibromatosis Foundation International Database (NNFFID; 2,638 patients)2,3 and an English series (288 patients). Superficial plexiform neurofibromas occurred in 23.2% of NNFFID patients and 24.0% of English patients. Paraspinal neurofibromas occurred in 1.7% of NNFFID patients and 4.2% of English patients. The low frequency of paraspinal tumors is …