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Colloid cyst

Case contributed by Maxime St-Amant
Diagnosis almost certain

Presentation

Emergency non-contrast CT-scan of the head in a patient with severe headaches. Otherwise well.

Patient Data

Age: 55 years
Gender: Male
ct

A round, hyperdense lesion, located in the interventricular foramina of Monro is present. No hydrocephalus. No other abnormality. 

Annotated image

Colloid cyst (blue arrow) located just below the foramina of Monro (red arrows) which form a communication between the frontal horns of the lateral ventricles (FH) and the third ventricle (TV). 

Case Discussion

This case illustrates the typical appearance of a colloid cyst, a very important finding as they are associated with sudden death, and patients need to be referred for surgical assessment. The clinical and management challenge is addressing medium sized cysts (e.g. 7mm) in a patient with vague headaches, where they are most likely incidental but cannot be entirely discounted as the cause of headaches. 

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