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OBJECTIVE: Isolated intracranial tuberculomas are rare, especially in adults and it is not uncommon that they are easily confused with other diseases. To address this issue, we reported a case of a tuberculoma of the corpus callosum focusing on clinical characteristics, diagnostic clues, and outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Intracranial masses are frequently targeted as neoplastic pathology with surgical treatment in most cases. It is important to distinguish between neuro tuberculoma and brain tumors because of their different management and prognosis. Therefore even in absence of a known history of primary TB and in immunocompetent patients, tuberculoma must be in the differential diagnosis of solitary intracranial lesions also in countries where TB is not endemic.
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Pseudohypoparathyroidism type 1A (PHP1A) is usually diagnosed in childhood or early adulthood. We describe the case of a 64-year-old woman admitted to the Neurological Unit for recurrent episodes of loss of consciousness and seizures. Glycemia and ECG were normal, while hypocalcemia was noted. Clinical history revealed carpo-pedal spasm since the age of 30 years, cognitive impairment, hypothyroidism since early adulthood, and menopause at 30 years. She was taking oral calcium and cholecalciferol for chronic hypocalcemia. Physical features suggested Albright's osteodystrophy. Blood calcium was confirmed low, with increased parathyroid hormone, moderate 25OH-vitamin D deficiency, and normal creatinine. Brain CT scan revealed calcifications of the basal ganglia, cortical and subcortical white matter, and cerebellum. Therapy was switched to oral calcitriol, with normalization of calcium levels; levetiracetam was started and no further seizures occurred. The clinical diagnosis of PHP1A was confirmed by molecular analysis, which demonstrated the heterozygous c.568_571del mutation of the GNAS gene. Our report illustrates the natural history of a patient with PHP1A, which went undiagnosed until the age of 64 years, with multi-hormonal resistance and clinical sequelae evolving throughout life, and underlines the importance of diagnosing this rare disease, which has a great impact on patients and their family life.
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Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS), provides in a single session, a high dose of radiation to a localized brain tumor volume. Acute adverse reactions after treatment are not uncommon, but are usually transient and generally are well controlled by medication. The authors wish to report this rare complication of intratumoral and peritumoral hemorrhage immediately after LINAC SRS treatment of single temporal lobe metastasis from renal cell carcinoma and discuss plausible causes for this case and its management. A review of the literature on acute intracranial hemorrhage after radiosurgery for metastatic lesions is provided. A 68-year-old man underwent SRS treatment for a single left temporal lobe metastasis. No complications were noticed during frame fixation, treatment itself, or frame removal. Thirty minutes after the end of treatment session the patient acutely became aphasic and right hemiplegic. An urgent CT-scan revealed peritumoral and intratumoral hemorrhage. Patient underwent urgent surgical treatment during which was performed gross total excision of the brain metastasis and total removal of the clot. The patient had a good recovery after surgery and he was discharged with moderate aphasia but able to walk with no other neurological deficits. Stereotactic radiosurgery for metastatic brain tumors should not be considered as a risk-free procedure, especially in cases of neoplasms with high propensity for intratumoral bleeding and, while extremely rare, hemorrhagic complications can occur after treatment. The possibility of acute complications and their consequences have to be discussed with the patient and his or her relatives before radiosurgical treatment.