Space‐occupying lesion presenting with behavioural change symptoms

Psychiatric presentation in undiagnosed intracranial space-occupying lesions: A case series

Intracranial space-occupying lesions (SOLs) account for about 5-10 deaths per 100,000 in India. They present with physical symptoms such as headache, nausea, vomiting, and weakness; neurological symptoms such as seizures, and focal neurological deficit; and behavioral changes manifesting as depression (15-20%), anxiety (30-50%), psychosis (<5%), and personality changes (16-76%). Therefore, it is necessary to do an appropriate general, neurological, and behavioral examination for proper diagnosis and management. A series of four cases who reported to psychiatric outpatient with behavioural complaints and no focal neurological deficits were reported. The most common presentation of SOLs is seizure, headache, vomiting, and loss of consciousness. Along with this complaint, some patients may present with abnormal behavior. However, it is very rare for a SOL to present solely with psychiatric or behavioral complaints. Therefore, it becomes imperative to keep a close watch on the symptoms and send for timely investigations.

Determining KLF14 tertiary structure and diagnostic significance in brain cancer progression

Expression analysis of new protein targets may play a crucial role in the early detection and diagnosis of brain tumor progression. The study aimed to investigate the possible relation of KLF14, TPD52, miR-124, and PKCε in the development and progression of brain cancer and space occupying lesion (SOL) of the brain. One hundred human blood samples comprising varying diagnostic groups (SOL brain, grade I, II, III, IV) were analyzed by real-time quantitative PCR to determine the expression level of KLF14, TPD52, miR-124, and PKCε. TPD52 and PKCε were upregulated in brain cancer by 2.5- and 1.6-fold, respectively, whereas, KLF14 and miR-124 were downregulated in brain cancer. In metastatic and high-grade brain cancer, TPD52 and PKCε expression were up-regulated and KLF14 and miR-124 expression were down-regulated. Further, these genes were found to be differentially expressed in the blood of patients with SOL. Upregulation of TPD52 and PKCε, however, reduced expression of KLF14 and miR-124 in SOL of the brain as compared to healthy controls. Expression analysis of TPD52, KLF14, miR-124, and PKCε provided useful information on the differences existing between the normal brain and SOL, in addition to gliomas; thus, might prove to be useful having diagnostic or prognostic value.