Case Of the Week (COW) 21 February 2016
Cavernous angioma with bleed.
Findings
Cavernous angioma embedded in the SPLENIUM of the corpus callosum WITH recent intralesional bleeding.
Discussion
The supposed relationship between corpus callosum and behavior is well known. Most of the reported cases describe a lipoma of the corpus callosum, which is associated with agenesis in about 50% of cases. Some authors hypothesized that defective interhemispheric communication, which is largely mediated by corpus callosum, may underlie schizophrenia. Also tumors of the corpus callosum can be present with dementia, depression, schizophrenia, and psychosis . Brain cavernous angiomas are rare neurovascular lesions. Seizures, focal neurological deficits, and hemorrhage are their most frequent manifestations. Particularly, hemorrhage is the most common cause of an abrupt worsening of symptoms. T1 and T2 signal is varied internally depending on the age of the blood . Gradient echo or T2* sequences are able to delineate these lesions better than T1 or T2 weighted images. In patients with familial or multiple cavernous angiomas GRE T2* sequences are very important in identifying the number of lesions missed by conventional Spin echo sequences.
Cavernous angioma with bleed.
Findings
Cavernous angioma embedded in the SPLENIUM of the corpus callosum WITH recent intralesional bleeding.
Discussion
The supposed relationship between corpus callosum and behavior is well known. Most of the reported cases describe a lipoma of the corpus callosum, which is associated with agenesis in about 50% of cases. Some authors hypothesized that defective interhemispheric communication, which is largely mediated by corpus callosum, may underlie schizophrenia. Also tumors of the corpus callosum can be present with dementia, depression, schizophrenia, and psychosis . Brain cavernous angiomas are rare neurovascular lesions. Seizures, focal neurological deficits, and hemorrhage are their most frequent manifestations. Particularly, hemorrhage is the most common cause of an abrupt worsening of symptoms. T1 and T2 signal is varied internally depending on the age of the blood . Gradient echo or T2* sequences are able to delineate these lesions better than T1 or T2 weighted images. In patients with familial or multiple cavernous angiomas GRE T2* sequences are very important in identifying the number of lesions missed by conventional Spin echo sequences.