Intrinsic brainstem epidermoid cyst. Case report and review of the literature

Journal of Neurosurgery
Pablo F RecinosGeorge I Jallo

Abstract

Brainstem epidermoid cysts are rare lesions, with only 18 reported cases in the literature and only five purely intrinsic epidermoid cysts within this group. The authors present the case of a 3-year-old girl with a history of chronic headaches, progressive diplopia, and relapsing and remitting mild right hemiparesis who was found to harbor an intrinsic brainstem epidermoid cyst at the pontomedullary junction. Initial working diagnoses included intrinsic brainstem astrocytoma and cavernoma. After tumor enlargement and progressive symptoms, a diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging sequence was performed and a definitive diagnosis of an intrinsic brainstem epidermoid cyst was made in the patient. The patient underwent a suboccipital craniotomy and complete resection of the cyst with the aid of intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring. Three years after the operation, the patient is neurologically intact and no evidence of tumor recurrence has been found. The rarity of brainstem epidermoid cysts can make their diagnosis difficult; thus a DW MR imaging sequence of the brain is a useful diagnostic modality. Intrinsic brainstem epidermoid cysts can be removed safely, in a manner similar to that used for the surgic...Continue Reading

References

Aug 1, 1979·Journal of Neurosurgery·E N Weaver, R A Coulon
Feb 1, 1978·Neurology·J F Schwartz, J D Balentine
May 1, 1978·Journal of Neurosurgery·O Leal, J Miles
Dec 1, 1992·Child's Nervous System : ChNS : Official Journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery·D FournierG Guy
Jan 1, 1991·Journal of Neurosurgery·W G Obana, C B Wilson
Apr 1, 1989·Neurosurgery·M G YaşargilA C Sarioglu
Nov 1, 1989·Surgical Neurology·K IiharaS Nagasawa
Feb 1, 1985·Journal of Neurosurgery·M S Berger, C B Wilson
Nov 1, 1974·Journal of Neurosurgery·R H MortaraW H Brooks
Oct 1, 1965·Journal of Neurosurgery·J U TogliaE Alexander
Jun 1, 1996·Surgical Neurology·K YoshizatoY Ushio
Jan 1, 1996·Neurosurgical Review·K KuzeyliF Aktürk
Feb 9, 2000·Acta neurochirurgica·R KachharaV V Radhakrishnan
Oct 3, 2001·Surgical Neurology·M CaldarelliC Di Rocco
Nov 2, 2001·Neuroradiology·M BerguiS Sales
Dec 1, 1964·Journal of Neurosurgery·J ULRICH

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

May 1, 2013·Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery·Harvey ChimBahman Guyuron
May 12, 2011·Journal of Pediatric Neurosciences·Priyanka Kawal, Raj Kumar
Aug 25, 2011·Journal of Child Neurology·C V GopalakrishnanSuresh Nair
Jan 17, 2015·Journal of Neurosurgery·Emad AboudOssama Al-Mefty

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Cavernous Hemangioma

Cavernous hemangioma is a blood vessel defect or benign tumor that leads to leakage of blood to the surrounding tissues. This can occur in several organs including the brain, which can lead to seizures. Discover the latest research on cavernous hemangiomas here.

Astrocytes

Astrocytes are glial cells that support the blood-brain barrier, facilitate neurotransmission, provide nutrients to neurons, and help repair damaged nervous tissues. Here is the latest research.