Pelvic Ependymoma With Clinical Response to GnRH Analog Therapy: A Case Report With an Overview of Primary Extraneural Ependymomas.

Extraneural ependymomas are rare tumors that occur in sacrococcygeal, pelvic and extra pelvic regions. While sacrococcygeal extraneural ependymomas are equally distributed among males and females, pelvic and extra pelvic ependymomas have been exclusively reported in women, mainly of child bearing age. We present a case of extraneural, pelvic ependymoma that showed clinical response to GnRH therapy with its immunohistochemical and electron microscopic analysis, and an overview of primary extraneural ependymomas based on a review of all such cases published in English literature.

Rare isolated trigeminal nerve sarcoidosis mimicking schwannoma.

Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous disorder of unknown etiology involving multiple organ systems. Isolated neurosarcoidosis is exceedingly rare. This case report presents isolated trigeminal nerve sarcoidosis mimicking schwannoma in a patient presenting with symptoms of trigeminal neuralgia.

A case of systemic lupus erythematosus associated with longitudinal extensive transverse myelitis, cerebral neutrophilic vasculitis, and cerebritis.

Systemic Lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with multiple clinical presentations and manifestations. Here, we report an intriguing case of a 30-year-old female with full-blown SLE, associated with longitudinal extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) manifested by lower extremity weakness, neurogenic bladder and bowel, and central nervous system (CNS) lupus clinically manifested by changes in mood and behavior as well as neutrophilic vasculitis and cerebritis on pathology. LETM is a rare complication of SLE; however, what makes this case even more intriguing is that it additionally had cerebral lesions consistent with neutrophilic vasculitis and cerebritis, and that it may all have started at least 10 years prior with nonspecific musculoskeletal manifestations subsequently followed by a rash as well as intractable fevers of unknown etiology—much later attributed to her lupus.

Multinodular and vacuolating neuronal tumors of the cerebrum: 10 cases of a distinctive seizure-associated lesion.

We report 10 cases of a non-neurocytic, purely neuronal tumor affecting adults. Situated in the cerebral hemispheres, with 7 of 10 confined to the temporal lobes, most presented with seizures as their principal clinical manifestations. On magnetic resosnance imaging (MRI), the tumors generally appeared solid and non-contrast enhancing with minimal diffuse infiltration, edema, or mass effect.

Suprasellar hamartoma and arachnoid cyst.

Objective: The differential diagnosis for suprasellar masses includes a variety of pathologies, ranging from stable and benign lesions to aggressive and malignant ones. We report a case of a suprasellar hamartoma associated with an arachnoid cyst and review the literature surrounding the topic.

Case Description: A 32-year-old man who presented with headaches and nonspecific vision loss was found to have a cystic, calcified, and minimally contrast enhancing lesion of the suprasellar region.

Medulloblastoma presenting as consecutive esotropia after successful lateral rectus muscle recession for infantile exotropia.

Comitant infantile exotropia is a rare entity and is far less common than infantile esotropia. It has been shown to be highly correlated with intracranial pathology. We report a case of a medulloblastoma in a child in whom it presented as an incomitant esotropia after surgical correction for comitant infantile exotropia.

Brain metastasis of Wilms tumor with diffuse anaplasia and complex cytogenetic phenotype in a child with neurofibromatosis Type 1.

The authors report the first case of a Wilms tumor (WT) with diffuse anaplasia metastatic to the brain in a 13-year-old girl with a history of neurofibromatosis Type 1. At presentation, the metastatic tumor had radiological features that suggested a meningioma. Histologically it was characterized by striking anaplasia and features similar to the patient's previously resected WT with diffuse anaplasia.

Isolated sixth cranial nerve palsy as the presenting symptom of a rapidly expanding ACTH positive pituitary adenoma: a case report.

Background: Pituitary adenoma may present with neuro-ophthalmic manifestations and, typically, rapid tumor expansion is the result of apoplexy. Herein, we present the first case of an isolated sixth cranial nerve palsy as initial feature of a rapidly expanding ACTH positive silent tumor without apoplexy.

Case Presentation: A 44 year old female with a history of sarcoidosis presented with an isolated sixth cranial nerve palsy as the initial clinical feature of a rapidly expanding ACTH positive silent pituitary adenoma.

A 3-year- old girl with altered mental status, gait difficulty, and vomiting.

We report a case of a 3-year-old girl with a 9-month history of focal neurologic finding and signs of increased intracranial pressure. Radiological imaging studies showed a minimally heterogeneous enhancing large tumor involving left parietal region and partly filling the left lateral ventricle. Microscopically, the tumor contained prominent small true rosettes set into areas of fibrillar neuropil-like matrix.

Loss of cation-chloride cotransporter expression in preterm infants with white matter lesions: implications for the pathogenesis of epilepsy.

Epilepsy associated with preterm birth is often refractory to anticonvulsants. Children who are born preterm are also prone to cognitive delay and behavioral problems. Brains from these children often show diffuse abnormalities in cerebral circuitry that is likely caused by disrupted development during critical stages of cortical formation.

Metameric thoracic lesion: report of a rare case and a guide to management.

Metameric lesions of the spine are rare. The authors present a case of patient with a complex metameric vascular lesion of the thoracic spine and describe a management strategy for this entity.

Cystic choroid plexus papilloma in the cavum septum pellucidum.

A choroid plexus papilloma is a rare CNS neoplasm arising from the neuroepithelial lining of the choroid plexus. A third ventricular location of a choroid plexus papilloma is rare compared with the more common sites in the lateral and fourth ventricles. Cystic choroid plexus papilloma represents an infrequent subtype that may present diagnostic ambiguity.

Systemic CD5+ MALT lymphoma: presentation with Waldenstrom syndrome.

We report a case of extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT lymphoma) in a 75-year-old woman with a neuropathy related to high levels of serum immunoglobulin M and a history of rheumatoid arthritis and polymyositis. The patient developed a mass in the right submandibular salivary gland, and this mass demonstrated histopathologic features that are typical of MALT lymphoma, including infiltrates of small monocytoid B cells in the epithelium (forming "lymphoepithelial lesions"), a reactive background of florid germinal center hyperplasia, and follicular colonization by the monocytoid B cells. Many plasma cells in the background expressed cytoplasmic immunoglobulin M lambda, matching the serum spike.

Diagnostic quality of: polyps resected by snare polypectomy: does the type of electrosurgical current used matter?

Background: Traditionally, snare polypectomy is performed using blended, coagulation, or pure cutting electrical current (EC). The aim of this study was to assess and compare the diagnostic quality of polyps obtained by snare polypectomy using two different electrosurgical currents.

Methods: Consecutive patients undergoing colonoscopy underwent polypectomy using either blended EC with a conventional electrosurgical generator (ESG) or using an ESG with a microprocessor that automatically controls cutting and coagulation (Endocut).

Expression of Notch-1 and its ligands, Delta-like-1 and Jagged-1, is critical for glioma cell survival and proliferation.

The Notch family of proteins plays an integral role in determining cell fates, such as proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. We show that Notch-1 and its ligands, Delta-like-1 and Jagged-1, are overexpressed in many glioma cell lines and primary human gliomas. Immunohistochemistry of a primary human glioma tissue array shows the presence in the nucleus of the Notch-1 intracellular domain, indicating Notch-1 activation in situ.

Alpha-synuclein lesions in normal aging, Parkinson disease, and Alzheimer disease: evidence from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA).

Alpha-synuclein (alpha-synuclein) lesions are characteristic of idiopathic Parkinson disease (PD) and other alpha-synucleinopathies. To study the frequency of alpha-synuclein lesions in normal aging and how frequently they coexist with lesions of Alzheimer disease (AD), we examined the autopsy brains from normal and demented subjects in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) (n = 117). We found that the overall frequency of alpha-synuclein lesions was 25%, with 100% in 7 cases of PD, 31.

Notch1 and notch2 have opposite effects on embryonal brain tumor growth.

The role of Notch signaling in tumorigenesis can vary; Notch1 acts as an oncogene in some neoplasms, and a tumor suppressor in others. Here, we show that different Notch receptors can have opposite effects in a single tumor type. Expression of truncated, constitutively active Notch1 or Notch2 in embryonal brain tumor cell lines caused antagonistic effects on tumor growth.

Rhabdoid meningioma: cytopathologic findings in cerebrospinal fluid.

Rhabdoid meningioma is a recently described, rare, WHO Grade III intracranial tumor with an aggressive growth pattern and increased risk of recurrence. We describe the cytopathologic findings on cerebrospinal fluid of one such case in a 26-yr-old female who underwent resection of a left temporo-parietal mass. Cerebrospinal fluid contained abundant malignant cells with a prominent "rhabdoid" phenotype, i.

A review of methadone deaths in Jefferson County, Alabama.

Interpretation of the concentration of a drug is more difficult when a combination of drugs is present in a decedent's blood. An increase in deaths resulting from co-intoxication with methadone and a benzodiazepine led the authors to perform a retrospective study of cases examined at the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner Office. They found 101 deaths wherein methadone was detected in the blood.