An isolated fourth ventricle in neurosarcoidosis: MRI findings

Eur Radiol. 2002 Dec:12 Suppl 3:S1-3. doi: 10.1007/s00330-002-1369-3. Epub 2002 May 8.

Abstract

We report on an isolated enlargement of the fourth ventricle in a patient with neurosarcoidosis which developed 3 years after the insertion of a ventriculo-atrial shunt. Repeated MRI images were obtained in a patient with known neurosarcoidosis between 1995 and 2000. Imaging findings were correlated to the medical course of the patient, who developed a hydrocephalus and a trapped fourth ventricle consecutively. The isolation was presumably due to granulomatous inflammation of the ependyma surrounding the fourth ventricular outlets. The isolated fourth ventricle was responsible for a deterioration of neurological status. Neurosarcoidosis is a severe complication in sarcoidosis patients. An isolated enlargement of the fourth ventricle is a rare complication in clinically deteriorated patients with neurosarcoidosis and ventricular drainage, which may require neurosurgical treatment.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Central Nervous System Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Central Nervous System Diseases / surgery
  • Cerebral Ventricles / pathology*
  • Cerebral Ventricles / surgery
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Sarcoidosis / diagnosis*
  • Sarcoidosis / surgery
  • Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt