ABSTRACT
Hypertrophic olivary degeneration (HOD) is a unique form of transneuronal degeneration caused by a disruption of the dentato-rubro-olivary pathway, also known as the triangle of Guillain-Mollaret. The triangle of Guillain-Mollaret is involved in fine voluntary motor control and consists of both the inferior olivary nucleus and the red nucleus on one side and the contralateral dentate nucleus. Clinically, patients classically present with symptomatic palatal myoclonus. Typical magnetic resonance imaging findings include T2-hyperintensity and enlargement of the inferior olivary nucleus evolving over time to atrophy with residual T2-hyperintensity. In this article, we provide a case-based illustration of the anatomy of the Guillain-Mollaret-triangle and the typical imaging findings of hypertrophic olivary degeneration.
Subject(s)
Ear Canal/abnormalities , Ear Canal/diagnostic imaging , Ear Diseases/complications , Ear Diseases/diagnostic imaging , Fistula/complications , Fistula/diagnostic imaging , Otitis Media with Effusion/etiology , Aged , Cone-Beam Computed Tomography/methods , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Humans , SalivaABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION AND AIM: Sinonasal malignant neoplasms are uncommon, with an annual incidence of less than 1/100,000. About 80% of these are squamous cell carcinoma. Adenocarcinoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma are next in frequency. Lymphoma of the nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses and nasopharynx are rare, constituting less than 5% of all extranodal lymphomas. CASE REPORT: A 47-year-old man was referred to our hospital because of severe headache and progressive facial pain. He also complained of right-sided visual acuity. He had a manifest exopthalmia with disturbed eye movements. Nasoscopy showed a large mass with atypical appearance. CT and MRI showed a bilateral ethmoid mass invading the frontal sinuses, the right orbit, the lamina cribrosa and the right frontal cerebral region, and growing posteriorly through the choana. The first biopsies were inconclusive, showing only necrotic cells and purulent inflammation with epithelial elements. A larger biopsy demonstrated a high-grade malignant tumour with necrosis. The differential diagnosis of undifferentiated sinonasal carcinoma, undifferentiated neuro-endocrine tumour or T-cell lymphoma was suggested. In the meantime our patient developed high fever and sudden-onset pancytopenia. Bone marrow punction showed 65% blasts, leading to the diagnosis of AML type M2. He was immediately referred for chemotherapy, but died in intensive care before his first session. The biopsy of the sinonasal mass was diagnosed surprisingly as a natural killer cell lymphoma stage IVB. CONCLUSIONS: Natural killer cell lymphoma is rare in Europe. The simultaneous appearance of a NK-cell lymphoma and acute myelogenous leukemia has, as far as we know, never been described in the English literature before.
Subject(s)
Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/diagnosis , Lymphoma, Extranodal NK-T-Cell/diagnosis , Neoplasms, Multiple Primary/diagnosis , Nose Neoplasms/diagnosis , Exophthalmos/etiology , Fatal Outcome , Humans , Image Enhancement , Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/complications , Lymphoma, Extranodal NK-T-Cell/complications , Lymphoma, Extranodal NK-T-Cell/pathology , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Male , Middle Aged , Neoplasm Invasiveness , Neoplasms, Multiple Primary/pathology , Nose Neoplasms/complications , Nose Neoplasms/pathology , Pancytopenia/etiology , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
Pott's puffy tumor (PPT), or osteomyelitis of the frontal bone, is a rare entity especially in adults. PPT is believed to occur as a complication of fronto-ethmoidal sinusitis or trauma to the frontal bone. We present the computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings in such a rare case of Pott's puffy tumor.
Subject(s)
Eyelid Diseases/etiology , Pott Puffy Tumor/diagnosis , Adult , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Male , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: We report the CT and MR findings in a 30-year-old man with extraskeletal Ewing sarcoma (EES) involving the left neural foramen at L5-S1 level. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The patient was evaluated with preoperative lumbosacral CT and MR imaging and postoperative lumbosacral MR imaging. RESULTS: The lesion was hyperdense on CT, isointense on T1- and T2-weighted MR images, and enhanced homogeneously after intravenous gadolinium injection. With these CT and MR findings, surgery was performed with a presumptive diagnosis of nerve sheath tumor, but the histopathological examination revealed EES. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy were planned postoperatively. CONCLUSION: This case illustrates that even in benign looking lesions in a neuroforamen one can never exclude malignancy, and this is even more true in a population of young adults.
Subject(s)
Nerve Sheath Neoplasms/diagnosis , Sarcoma, Ewing/diagnosis , Spinal Neoplasms/diagnosis , Adult , Diagnosis, Differential , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Male , Sarcoma, Ewing/surgery , Spinal Neoplasms/surgery , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
We report a 32-year-old woman with an exceptionally large capillary telangiectasia in the brainstem which is associated with a developmental venous anomaly (DVA). Her major problems were nystagmus in both eyes, binocular diplopia, gait abnormalities, cerebellar ataxia, slightly disturbed finger-nose test, an instable Romberg test and obvious dysartria. The diagnosis was made on the basis of specific imaging findings, and the use of gradient echo-weighted images proved to be helpful in making a differential diagnostic decision.
Subject(s)
Brain Stem/blood supply , Central Nervous System Vascular Malformations/diagnosis , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Abnormalities, Multiple/diagnosis , Adult , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , HumansABSTRACT
Birt-Hogg-Dubé (BHD) syndrome is a rare autosomal dominant condition characterised by benign tumours of the hair follicle, renal cancer, pulmonary cysts and spontaneous pneumothorax. We report the diagnosis of a BHD syndrome achieved after incidental radiological finding of a renal tumour in a 24-year old man. The patient also displayed recurrent pneumothoraces and showed to have cysts in the basis of both lungs. The association of recurrent pneumothoraces and renal neoplastic disease should alert for the possible presence of this syndrome.
Subject(s)
Birt-Hogg-Dube Syndrome/diagnosis , Kidney Neoplasms/diagnosis , Humans , Incidental Findings , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Male , Tomography, X-Ray Computed , Young AdultABSTRACT
Pott's puffy tumor, a subperiosteal abscess of the frontal bone with cranial osteomyelitis, is a rare complication of frontal sinusitis. In this report, we describe the radiological findings of a 24-year-old man, presenting with swelling of the right upper eyelid. Correct and early diagnosis of this infrequent, but potentially life-threatening condition is of utmost importance.
Subject(s)
Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Pott Puffy Tumor/diagnosis , Tomography, Spiral Computed , Diagnosis, Differential , Humans , Male , Pott Puffy Tumor/diagnostic imaging , Young AdultABSTRACT
We report the CT findings in a 77-year-old woman with left-sided aryepiglottic fold metastasis from breast cancer diagnosed 7 years previously. The lesion obliterated the left piriform sinus, had a lobulated contour and showed mild and heterogeneous enhancement on a post-contrast CT examination. Biopsy of the lesion revealed metastasis from poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, compatible with metastasis of the breast carcinoma. Before detection of the laryngeal lesion, a second primary tumor in the right ovary was diagnosed. After right oopherectomy, histopathology revealed clear cell adenocarcinoma. The patient also had multiple subcutaneous metastases and bilateral cervical lymphadenopathies. Chemotherapy was applied to the patient.
Subject(s)
Breast Neoplasms/pathology , Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/pathology , Laryngeal Neoplasms/secondary , Soft Tissue Neoplasms/secondary , Aged , Breast Neoplasms/therapy , Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/therapy , Contrast Media , Epiglottis/pathology , Female , Humans , Laryngeal Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging , Soft Tissue Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
Temporal bone anatomy is complicated on CT with many normal variants, of which some are infrequently seen or lesser known. The unaware radiologist can confuse them with pathology. Other lesser known normal variations are important to report because they can cause pathology. This paper illustrates in detail how to avoid such misinterpretations of anatomical structures.
Subject(s)
Bone Diseases/diagnostic imaging , Temporal Bone/diagnostic imaging , Tomography, X-Ray Computed/methods , Humans , Temporal Bone/anatomy & histologyABSTRACT
Middle ear opacification on imaging studies performed in a non-traumatic setting mostly reflects chronic inflammatory/infectious disease. In some of these patients an underlying cholesteatoma will be found. High-resolution computed tomography examinations and magnetic resonance imaging are often used in the work-out of the disease. High-resolution computed tomography of the opacified middle ear serves to describe the status of the ossicular chain, and its suspensory apparatus, as well as the status of the tympanic and mastoid wall. When ossicular erosions are visualized, the probability of a present cholesteatoma is about 90%. Whereas high-resolution computed tomography is not able to differentiate cholesteatoma from other types of opacification, magnetic resonance imaging is. The combined use of delayed post-Gd T1-weighted images and non-EPI based DWI seems to be the actual best option on this matter.
Subject(s)
Cholesteatoma, Middle Ear/diagnosis , Ear, Middle/pathology , Contrast Media , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Mastoid/pathology , Otitis Media/diagnosis , Temporal Bone/pathology , Tomography, X-Ray Computed/methodsABSTRACT
A 47-year-old male patient with a dural craniocervical fistula is presented. One year after a car accident the man was admitted to the emergency department with severe nausea and progressive paralysis of the lower legs. MRI examination of the brain and cervical spine discovered cervical myelopathy and tortuous blood vessels anterior to the pons and cervical medulla. Angiography was performed to provide the final diagnosis of craniocervical fistula. An embolization of the fistula was performed, and all of the patient's complaints disappeared within three days.
Subject(s)
Central Nervous System Vascular Malformations/diagnosis , Angiography/methods , Central Nervous System Vascular Malformations/complications , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Male , Medulla Oblongata/blood supply , Meningeal Arteries/pathology , Middle Aged , Nausea/etiology , Paralysis/etiology , Pons/blood supply , Spinal Cord/blood supply , Vertebral Artery/pathologyABSTRACT
The trigeminal nerve is the largest cranial nerve with both a sensory and motor function. MRI is an excellent technique to evaluate the trigeminal nerve. We report the MRI findings and illustrate the normal and diseased trigeminal nerve at Meckel's cave, the cavernous sinus, the skull base foramina, the pterygopalatine fossa and the peripheral branches.
Subject(s)
Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Trigeminal Ganglion/anatomy & histology , Trigeminal Nerve Diseases/diagnosis , Trigeminal Nerve/anatomy & histology , Bone Diseases/diagnosis , Cavernous Sinus/anatomy & histology , Contrast Media , Cranial Nerve Neoplasms/diagnosis , Head and Neck Neoplasms/diagnosis , Humans , Image Enhancement/methods , Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Mandibular Nerve/anatomy & histology , Maxillary Nerve/anatomy & histology , Neoplasm Metastasis , Neurilemmoma/diagnosis , Ophthalmic Nerve/anatomy & histology , Pons/anatomy & histology , Skull/pathology , Skull Neoplasms/diagnosis , Subarachnoid Space/anatomy & histology , Trigeminal Ganglion/pathology , Trigeminal Nerve/pathologyABSTRACT
Devic's neuromyelitis optica is an uncommon but severe monophasic or relapsing demyelinating disease. Current evidence supports the concept that it is a distinct disorder from multiple sclerosis, with some specific imaging characteristics. The aim of this paper is to report the clinical and imaging features of this rare entity and to discuss its differential diagnosis.