ABSTRACT
Taenia martis is a tapeworm affecting mustelids, with rodents serving as intermediate hosts. The larval stage (cysticercus) has been found before only rarely in humans or primates. We hereby describe a case of cerebral T. martis cysticercosis in a French immunocompetent patient, confirmed by DNA analyses of biopsy material.
Subject(s)
Neurocysticercosis/diagnosis , Neurocysticercosis/pathology , Taenia/classification , Taenia/isolation & purification , Adult , Animals , Biopsy , Brain/pathology , Cluster Analysis , DNA, Helminth/chemistry , DNA, Helminth/genetics , Female , France , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Phylogeny , Sequence Analysis, DNA , Sequence HomologyABSTRACT
Epilepsy is a common disorder but diagnosis remains largely clinical. Although MRI and EEG significantly aid the diagnosis of epilepsy, these techniques may also be misleading and indicate abnormalities not related to phenomenology. Consequences of erroneous diagnosis of epilepsy may lead to aggressive and escalating pharmacotherapy with potentially serious side effects. Metabolic disorders, which may mimic epilepsy, should always be considered as they are potentially curable and may be fatal if untreated. We report a case of an insulinoma, misdiagnosed as temporal lobe epilepsy. We highlight the risks associated with misinterpretation of neuroimaging and EEG and outline an approach to differentiate between symptoms of insulinoma or neuroglycopenia and temporal epileptic seizures.
