Extreme de novo appearance of cerebral cavernous malformations: case report.

OBJECTIVE: Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are found in 0.1 to 0.5% of the population. With the advent of magnetic resonance imaging, they have been increasingly recognized, suggesting a higher prevalence than previously reported. The development of de novo lesions is well documented, with a reported rate of 0.2 to 0.4 lesions per patient per year. We present a patient who developed 70 new lesions over a 38-month period (approximately 22 per yr). CLINICAL PRESENTATION: A 32-year-old woman was admitted to the obstetric service with a diagnosis of viral gastroenteritis. She became acutely unresponsive, and a computed tomographic scan of the head revealed an acute left frontal intraparenchymal hematoma with significant edema and midline shift. She rapidly deteriorated, developing a fixed, dilated left pupil and agonal respirations. INTERVENTION: She was taken to the operating room for an emergent left frontal craniotomy and decompression with evacuation of the hematoma. A magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed multiple cavernous malformations, and histopathology was consistent with cavernous malformation. Genetic testing revealed a CCM1 mutation. CONCLUSION: This patient demonstrates the truly dynamic nature of CCMs and the increased incidence of new lesions in the setting of CCM1 mutation. This case is remarkable not only for the unprecedented rate of lesion formation (approximately 22 per yr), but also because of the nearly unilateral distribution of the lesions.

Iatrogenic pyogenic osteomyelitis of C-1 and C-2 treated with transoral decompression and delayed posterior occipitocervical arthrodesis. Case report.

The authors describe a case of osteomyelitis of the craniocervical junction caused by iatrogenic infection of the spine during corticosteroid injection therapy. This 58-year-old diabetic man presented with acute exacerbation of neck pain that had began 4 months prior to admission. He did not experience the associated fever, chills, or sweats, but he did notice transient weakness in the right upper extremity. A computed tomography (CT) scan of the cervical spine demonstrated a destructive process involving the odontoid and the left occipitocervical and atlantoaxial joints that was not present on a CT obtained 2 months earlier, just before trigger-point and left-sided C1-2 facet joint corticosteroid injections. A diagnosis of staphylococcal osteomyelitis was made, and initial treatment with external immobilization and appropriate antibiotic therapy failed to control radiographically demonstrated and clinical progression. The patient was successfully treated using staged anterior decompression and posterior instrumented fusion with prolonged antibiotic therapy. To the authors' knowledge this case is the first reported instance of iatrogenic pyogenic osteomyelitis of the craniocervical junction successfully treated with anterior decompression and delayed posterior arthrodesis.