Progressive post traumatic tearing of an arachnoid cyst membrane resulting in intracystic and subdural haemorrhage

Heather M Pascoe; Pramit M Phal; James A J King

doi:10.1016/j.jocn.2014.12.006

Progressive post traumatic tearing of an arachnoid cyst membrane resulting in intracystic and subdural haemorrhage

J Clin Neurosci. 2015 May;22(5):897-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2014.12.006. Epub 2015 Mar 11.

Authors

Heather M Pascoe¹, Pramit M Phal², James A J King³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiology, Royal Melbourne Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC Australia. Electronic address: pascoeh@gmail.com.
² Department of Radiology, Royal Melbourne Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC Australia.
³ Department of Neurosurgery, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.

PMID: 25769260
DOI: 10.1016/j.jocn.2014.12.006

Abstract

We report the case of a 43-year-old man with a middle cranial fossa arachnoid cyst who presented post trauma with neurological symptoms. The initial CT scan of the brain did not detect acute changes in the arachnoid cyst but subsequent imaging revealed abnormalities which progressed over time. Arachnoid cysts are usually a benign and incidental finding. Rare complications such as intracystic haemorrhage and subdural haemorrhage can occur. It is important to be aware of these complications so that patients with arachnoid cysts are appropriately investigated when presenting with neurological symptoms.

Keywords: Arachnoid cyst; Head trauma; Subdural haemorrhage.

Publication types

Case Reports

MeSH terms

Arachnoid Cysts / complications
Arachnoid Cysts / diagnosis*
Brain / diagnostic imaging
Disease Progression*
Hematoma, Subdural / diagnosis*
Hematoma, Subdural / etiology
Humans
Incidental Findings
Male
Middle Aged
Rupture
Tomography, X-Ray Computed