An unusual presentation of neurotuberculosis: subdural empyema. Case report.

Tuberculosis continues to be a major public health concern, especially in developing countries. Many types of neurotuberculosis have been described, but there is only one previously reported case of subdural empyema caused by tuberculous bacilli. A 1-year-old boy who had been treated for pulmonary tuberculosis was referred to the authors' institution with a diagnosis of right frontoparietal extraaxial abscess formation. Computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed an extraaxial abscess with no evidence of calvarial infection. A craniotomy was performed to drain the pus, which was located subdurally. A polymerase chain reaction test yielded positive results, and histopathological examination revealed caseation. Antituberculous treatment was started after a diagnosis of subdural empyema with related neurotuberculosis had been made. At the end of a 12-month course of medical therapy, the patient was well with no evidence of tuberculosis.

An unusual presentation of occult spinal dysraphism.

Occult spinal dysraphism can lead to irreversible neurological complications, early diagnosis and treatment are necessary. It can be suspected from the presence of any cutaneous abnormality. We report a case with bony spur formation on the top of the 5th lumbar vertebra spinose process covered with skin mimicking a meningocel sac. By the help of this bony spur tethered cord could be diagnosed before any neurological deficit.

Dural cavernous hemangioma originating from superior petrosal sinus.

Cavernous angiomas of the dura are rare and have been described in the literature particularly in the middle cranial fossa. We present a case of cavernous hemangioma of the middle cranial fossa arising from the superior petrosal sinus. In our review of the literature, this is the 2(nd) report describing a cavernous hemangioma in such a location.

Arachnoid cyst with spontaneous rupture into the subdural space.

Spontaneous rupture of an arachnoid cyst into the subdural space is an unusual complication. Only six cases have been reported in the literature. We report here an additional case and review the literature concerning arachnoid cysts. The possible pathogenesis of this condition is discussed.

Spinal pneumorrhachis.

The term pneumorrhachis refers to the presence of air in the spinal canal. There are only a few previously reported cases in the literature. A case of air within the cervical and lumbar subarachnoid spaces, and a second case of air within the cervical subarachnoid space due to traumatic pneumocephalus are presented in this study.

Bone wax can cause foreign body granuloma in the medulla oblongata.

Bone wax is commonly used in neurosurgical practice as a haemostatic and sealing agent. It is a safe agent, but may lead to adverse effects such as infection, epistaxsis, allergic reaction or foreign body granuloma. There are very few reported cases of the neurological complications of remnant bone wax in the subdural or subarachnoid space. The authors report the case of a foreign body granuloma infiltration through the medulla oblongata due to remnant bone wax in the subarachnoid space after posterior fossa decompressive surgery.

Osteoid osteoma of the frontal bone. Case report.

A case of osteoid osteoma of the frontal bone is presented. It is a benign bone tumour which rarely involves the cranium. Local pain that is worse at night and improves following salicylate administration is characteristic for osteoid osteoma. This report describes cranial osteoid osteoma, a rare pathologic entity for the cranium, with pain only on palpation.

Lipoma of the interpeduncular fossa: demonstration by CT and MRI.

A case of intracranial lipoma located in the interpeduncular fossa of a young woman is presented. Since the patient suffers only nonspecific headache, no treatment was performed. To our knowledge this is the only which was demonstrated by magnetic resonance images (MRI) in the English language literature.

Pelvic osteosarcomas causing lumbosacral nerve root compression presenting as herniated intervertebral disc: report of two cases.

Osteosarcomas of the pelvic bone are rare. Neurological complication of osteosarcomas in this location is also rare. Diagnosis is not always easy, and misdiagnosis may occur due to pelvic bone destruction and nerve root compression. We present two cases of pelvic osteosarcoma with lumbosacral radicular symptoms who were previously thought to have lumbosacral herniated intervertebral disc.