Subependymoma presenting as subarachnoid hemorrhage: case report

A Case of Lateral Ventricular Subependymoma with Intratumoral Hemorrhage <i>via</i> Neuroendoscopic Surgery

Subependymoma (SE) is a rare, usually asymptomatic, brain tumor predominantly affecting older adults and occurring in the fourth and lateral ventricles. We report a rare case of SE with intratumoral hemorrhage that could be removed by neuroendoscopy. The 81-year-old patient had been followed as an outpatient for 10 years due to an intraventricular tumor. It did not grow over the patient's lengthy follow-up. The patient was transferred to our hospital after he fainted near his home; at the time of admission, he had mild consciousness disturbance, and his Glasgow Coma Scale score was 10 points (E3V3M4). Computed tomography showed intratumoral hemorrhage and slight ventricular enlargement. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging showed a 4 cm-sized tumor in the anterior horn of the right lateral ventricle. The lesion appeared as a mixed-intensity solid tumor and showed irregular enhancement with gadolinium. The patient underwent neuroendoscopic tumor resection on the 30^th day of the patient's hospital stay. A histopathological examination revealed small tumor cells with round nuclei scattered in the glial fibrillary background. Immunostaining was positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein; these findings are consistent with an SE diagnosis. The patient in this study had hypertension and used anticoagulants, risk factors for intratumoral hemorrhage. For intraventricular tumors with bleeding―particularly in older or more physically frail patients―minimally invasive neuroendoscopic surgery should be considered an option for tumor resection.

Atypical hemorrhagic presentation of a fourth ventricle subependymoma: case report

To present a case of a fourth ventricle subependymoma (SE) with a spontaneous acute subarachnoid intra-cisternal bleeding. A 33-year-old man was admitted with 5 days history of oppressive occipital headache and neck pain without additional neurological focus. Unenhanced computed tomography (CT) scan demonstrated an isointense mass located in the fourth ventricle with a spontaneously hyperdense acute extratumoral hemorrhage in the cisterna magna. Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a well-delimitated non-enhanced tumor, hypointense on T₁-weighted and hyperintense on T_2-weighted images, involving the floor of the fourth ventricle and extending caudally into the cervical spinal canal via foramen magnum. Intraoperative, a large blood clot was removed and a macroscopically hypovascularlesion was completely excised from the right lateral recess and the floor of the fourth ventricle. Intra and postoperative immuno-histopathological examination revealed a SE. The patient has a normal postoperative course and was discharged in the fifth postoperative day. A 10-month postoperative MRI study confirmed a complete tumor resection. Symptomatic SEs should be surgically treated emphasizing the urgency in the presence of hemorrhage. The interest of this case is to demonstrate that infratentorial SEs although extremely rare, might present with acute subarachnoid bleeding.

[Subependymomas of lateral ventricle. Analysis of our series and review of literature]

Subependymoma is a benign lesion, slow-growing neoplasm, representing 0.2 to 0.7 % of intracranial tumors. They are often clinically silent, incidentally discovered at autopsy. These symptoms are related to big volume. They are attached to the septum pellucidum, leading to hydrocephalus by Monro foramen obstruction. Overall mean age at diagnosis is 39 years with more males than females. At CT-scan, subependymoma shows a slightly low attenuation compared to gray matter. There is no or mild enhancement following contrast injection. On MR T1-weighted imaging, subependymoma is isointense and hyperintense on MR T2-weighted imaging. Intramural calcifications and cystic components are noted in 20 to 30 % of patients. Peritumoral oedema is absent. Immunohistochemicals studies show intense positivity for S-100 and GFAP. The treatment is surgical with an excellent prognosis.

Spontaneous acute hemorrhage within a subependymoma of the lateral ventricle: successful emergent surgical removal through a frontal transcortical approach

INTRODUCTION. Subependymomas are benign neoplasms intimately related to the ventricular system which only exceptionally associate hemorrhagic events. We present neuroradiological and pathological evidences of intratumoral hemorrhage within a single case of subependymoma operated on at our institution. Additionally we analyze retrospectively the well-defined reports of similar cases published in the scientific literature. CASE REPORT. A 71-year-old man on anticoagulant therapy presented with abrupt and progressive deterioration of his level of consciousness. Emergent computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging evidenced signs of acute bleeding within a mass located at the frontal horn of the left lateral ventricle, producing obstructive biventricular hydrocephalus. The lesion was immediately and completely removed through a left frontal transcortical approach. Pathological diagnosis was consistent with subependymoma displaying areas of microhemorrhage. After surgery the patient developed global anterograde and retrograde amnesia. CONCLUSIONS. A spontaneous hemorrhagic event within an asymptomatic lateral ventricle subependymoma can result in a surgical emergence as a consequence of sudden obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid pathways. Prompt and radical surgical removal of the mass, which allows a rapid resolution of hydrocephalus and prevents the risk of rebleeding, may constitute the safest management strategy.

Subependymoma in the lateral ventricle manifesting as intraventricular hemorrhage

A 32-year-old man presented with subependymoma in the lateral ventricle causing intraventricular hemorrhage and manifesting as severe headache and disturbance of consciousness. Computed tomography on admission showed a massive intraventricular hemorrhage and acute obstructive hydrocephalus. Cerebral angiography revealed no abnormal findings. Emergency external ventricular drainage was performed, and his neurological deficits gradually improved. Magnetic resonance imaging at 5 weeks after admission showed a tumor arising from the septum pellucidum or the floor of the right lateral ventricle, appearing as a mixed-intensity solid tumor, which was partially enhanced following gadolinium administration. The tumor had arisen from the septum pellucidum and was totally removed via an interhemispheric anterior transcallosal approach. Histological examination found typical subependymoma, with little vascularity. Intraventricular hemorrhage from cerebral neoplasms is usually due to highly vascular tumors. Since subependymomas are quite benign and show poor vascularity, intraventricular or subarachnoid hemorrhages are very rare, but do occasionally occur.

Differential diagnosis of nontraumatic intracerebral hemorrhage

A wide variety of nontraumatic pathologies can result in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Primary causes such as arterial hypertension or cerebral amyloid angiopathy can be differentiated from secondary pathologies, such as neoplasms, arterio-venous malformations, coagulopathies, hemorrhagic ischemic strokes, and cerebral venous and sinus thrombosis.Here, the authors first provide some general information on epidemiology, clinical presentation, and imaging appearance of ICHs followed by a detailed discussion of the different underlying pathologic entities and their imaging presentation.

Subependymoma of the lateral ventricle presenting with sudden onset

A 52-year-old man presented with sudden onset of severe headache, fever, mental confusion and mild signs of left hemisphere dysfunction. Computed tomographic and magnetic resonance imaging findings suggested a preoperative diagnosis of subependymoma of the left lateral ventricle, which was subsequently confirmed by surgery. The neoplasm could be totally removed and the postoperative clinical course was favourable. The reported case is unusual because symptomatic subependymomas of the lateral ventricle are definitely rare, and almost invariably present with a progressive clinical course over a period of weeks to years.

Intraventricular gliomas

Gliomas are the most common primary brain tumor in adults, and those within or relating to the ventricular surface represent a less common but important subcategory. The most common intraventricular gliomas include ependymomas, SEs, and SEGAs. Other less common varieties have been reported, including chordoid gliomas, glioblastoma multiforme, and mixed glial-neuronal tumors. Each type of intraventricular glioma is associated with its own unique constellation of epidemiologic, clinical, radiologic, and pathologic defining characteristics. Each tumor type has its own management considerations and nuances with unique prognostic indicators and outcomes. The outcome for certain intraventricular gliomas (especially ependymomas) remains relatively poor. Future advancements in surgical technique are likely to have only a modest impact on improvement of outcome. Translational research aiming to advance the knowledge of tumor biology into new targeted cellular and molecular therapies holds tremendous promise to improve the overall outcome. Additionally, more thorough delineation of prognostic factors as well as modifications and refinements to radiation and chemotherapy may help to improve the still significantly poor outcomes for patients harboring these lesions. Future cooperative intra- and interinstitutional efforts between scientists and clinicians will hopefully culminate in an improved outlook and eventual cure for patients with gliomas.

Cerebrovascular complications in cancer patients

Coagulation disorders are common in cancer patients. In patients with solid tumors, a low-grade activated coagulation can result in systemic and cerebral arterial or venous thrombosis. Cancer treatments may also contribute to this coagulopathy, which usually, but not exclusively, occurs in the setting of advanced malignant disease. There may be TIAs or cerebral infarctions. Because of the widespread distribution of cerebral thromboses, there may be a superimposed encephalopathy; sometimes this is the only sign. Concurrent systemic thrombosis is present in many patients and is a useful clue to the diagnosis. In cerebral venous occlusion, the initial symptom is usually a headache. Except for cerebral intravascular coagulation that is unassociated with NBTE, neuriomaging studies usually demonstrate one or more parenchymal infarctions. MRI or MRV may demonstrate venous thrombosis. The laboratory evidence of coagulopathy is difficult to distinguish from the asymptomatic coagulopathy that often accompanies advanced cancer, and the test results must be interpreted cautiously. NBTE can be diagnosed by transesophageal echocardiography. There is no established treatment for the thrombotic coagulopathy associated with cancer, but anticoagulation should be considered. In leukemia and lymphoma, the coagulopathy is typically acute DIC that can lead to systemic and brain hemorrhages. It is especially common in acute myelogenous leukemias. The clinical signs of cerebral hemorrhage are fulminant and may be fatal. The bleeding usually occurs in the brain or subdural compartment, and rarely in the subarachnoid space. The diagnosis can be suspected by the clinical setting and by systemic thrombosis or hemorrhage. It can be established by examination of the peripheral smear, the platelet count, and tests of coagulation function. Therapy of acute DIC is controversial and should be individualized for the clinical setting. Cerebrovascular disorders can complicate metastatic or primary tumor in the brain, skull, dura, or leptomeninges. The clinical signs of infarction are indistinguishable from other causes of stroke, except that tumor-related venous occlusion will usually first produce signs of increased intracranial pressure. The diagnosis of tumor-related infarction can usually be established by neuroimaging studies that show infarction and may show extracerebral sites of tumor. CSF examination is useful in diagnosing leptomeningeal metastasis. A search for lung or cardiac tumor should be performed when embolic tumor infarction is suspected. Primary or metastatic tumors in the brain or dura may hemorrhage, producing the initial clinical signs of the brain tumor or a change in chronic signs induced by the tumor. There are helpful clues to a neoplastic hemorrhage on brain CT or MRI scans. The brain hemorrhage may require evacuation and the underlying tumor will usually require additional antineoplastic treatment. Hyperleukocytosis (extreme elevation of the cell count) in acute myelogenous leukemia is a less common cause of brain hemorrhage in recent years because of improved methods to lower the cell count. Cerebral arterial or venous thrombosis is sometimes the result of cancer therapy. The attribution of thrombosis to chemotherapy in many published cases is only speculative, because carefully conducted prospective studies that include investigation for other thrombotic causes are not available. The best-known associations with thrombosis are L-asparaginase, which is typically used in the induction therapy of acute lymphocytic leukemia, and combination hormonal therapy and chemotherapy for breast cancer. Radiation to the head and neck, typically administered for head and neck epithelial cancers or lymphoma, may result in delayed carotid atherosclerosis. The distribution of stenosis or occlusion is within the radiation portal and is typically more extensive than is atherosclerosis that develops in the absence of radiation. Small clinical series suggest that surgical treatment is equally effective as in nonirradiated carotid atherosclerosis. In children, the cerebral vessels can be affected by brain radiation resulting in stenosis or occlusion. Brain hemorrhages can result from chemotherapy effects on the hemostatic system or a microangiopathic anemia. Hemorrhages from radiation-induced vascular abnormalities are rare. Opportunistic infections, especially fungal infections, can complicate cancer or its treatment. Septic cerebral emboli may result in focal cerebral signs, seizures, or encephalopathy. Sometimes there is an associated hemorrhagic vasculitis or cerebritis. Rarely, mycotic aneurysms may bleed. A high index of suspicion is needed to diagnose fungal infection because of the difficulty in culturing the organism from the blood or CSF. A clinician can usually establish the cause of stroke in the cancer patient by performing a careful review of the clinical setting--including the type and extent of cancer and the type of antineoplastic therapy--in which the stroke occurred. Systemic thrombosis, embolism, or hemorrhage can be a clue to the cause, and appropriate neuroimaging and coagulation studies to aid in the diagnosis are available. Therapy may ameliorate symptoms or prevent further episodes. The identification of one of these unusual stroke syndromes that leads to the diagnosis of an occult and treatable cancer can be particularly rewarding.

Clinicopathological study of seven cases of symptomatic supratentorial subependymoma

Subependymomas are rare, slow-growing tumors, the majority of which are found incidentally at postmortem examination. The authors retrospectively analyzed seven cases of symptomatic supratentorial subependymomas. Five were females and two were males, ranging in age at operation of 6-50 years (median 45). The follow-up period ranged from 1.5 to 8.3 years. Tumors were intraventricularly located as a lobulated mass with cystic changes: four in the frontal horn, two in the trigone, and one in the third ventricle. Moderate to marked enhancement was noted in two tumors of the trigone and in one tumor of the frontal horn on both CT scan and MR imaging. MR spectroscopy of a recurrent subependymoma demonstrated a higher Cho/Cr ratio of 2.66, compared with a Cho/Cr ratio (0.48) of a non-recurrent subependymoma. Angiography, which was performed in four patients, revealed no staining in two and delayed modest staining in two. Radiosurgery was performed in two patients but was ineffective. Five patients with gross total tumor resection showed no evidence of tumor recurrence to the last follow-up. The two subtotally resected trigonal tumors progressed two years after operation. No histological difference except MIB-1 index was noted between recurrent and non-recurrent cases. In conclusion, we suggest that subependymoma could show progressive biological behavior, especially in cases of markedly enhancing, irregularly contoured, large tumors located in the trigone. For symptomatic supratentorial subependymomas, gross total resection is the treatment of choice and radiation has little effect on tumor control.

Symptomatic subependymomas of the lateral ventricles. Report of eight cases

Subependymomas are rare, slow-growing, benign intraventricular tumors, which often are asymptomatic and are discovered incidentally. The review of the literature shows more than 100 symptomatic cases, less than half located in the lateral ventricles. Here we report 8 cases of symptomatic subependymomas of the lateral ventricles, studied by CT and/or MR and treated by direct surgical approach. The suspicion of a subependymoma should arise when a patient older than 10-15 years with long clinical history presents an intraventricular tumor isodense on CT and isointense in T1 and hyperintense in T2 on MR, with scarce or discrete contrast enhancement. Surgical treatment is indicated in symptomatic subependymomas of the lateral ventricles and usually allows complete tumor removal. The prognosis is usually good, also without postoperative irradiation.

Primitive neuroectodermal tumour presenting with subarachnoid haemorrhage

We report a case of medulloblastoma presenting as subarachnoid haemorrhage in an adult. The literature relating to subarachnoid haemorrhage and intracranial tumour is reviewed.

Subependymoma of the lateral ventricle: case report and literature review

A case is presented of a 35-year-old man, who suffered intermittent hydrocephalic attacks due to a large subependymoma arising within the left lateral ventricle. The sparse literature on this rare tumour is reviewed.

Hemorrhage in a highly vascularized subependymoma of the septum pellucidum: case report

A 63-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of loss of memory, disorientation, nausea, and urinary incontinence. Cerebral computed tomographic and magnetic resonance imaging scans revealed a tumor with intratumoral hemorrhage affecting the corpus callosum and the septum pellucidum. A partial resection of the tumor was performed, but the patient died the next day from an episode of bleeding. Postmortem examination revealed a highly vascularized subependymoma with acute bleeding in the tumor and in the surrounding brain parenchyma. The importance of considering a highly vascularized subependymoma is noted when a tumor related to the ventricular system is diagnosed.

Two surgically cured cases of subependymoma with emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging

The authors describe two surgically cured cases of symptomatic subependymomas located in the lateral ventricle and septum pellucidum with emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging study. Both computed tomography and MRI revealed a calcified mass with repeated intratumoral hemorrhages. Cerebral angiograms disclosed rather hypovascular lesions. The histologic diagnosis was proven to be of subependymoma. The pertinent literature of surgically treated subependymomas is reviewed, and the characteristic biologic features are also discussed.

Intracerebral subependymomas. Clinical and neuropathological analyses with special reference to the possible existence of a less benign variant

The frequency of asymptomatic subependymomas was 0.4% in 1,000 serial routine necropsies and 0.7% in symptomatic subependymomas from 1,000 serial surgical specimens of intracranial neoplasms. Among patients with subependymoma (7 symptomatic and 4 asymptomatic), we found 3 cases of marked nuclear polymorphism (NP) in biopsy specimens. The subjective NP was objectively quantified by computer-assisted morphometry, by which a significant difference in nuclear size between these three cases and other cases (p less than 0.005) was revealed. This morphological characteristic correlated with the results of DNA-analysis by flow fluorescence cytometry (FFCM): subependymomas with NP demonstrated higher S and G2/M phases in a diploid pattern than other benign gliomas of our series. From the clinical data including prognosis, however, no remarkable difference was found between the NP group and other groups. The possible existence of less benign variant should be considered in the diagnosis and treatment of subependymoma.

Ependymoma of the fourth ventricle: an unusual presentation

The authors describe the case history of a patient who suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage originating from an ependymoma of the fourth ventricle. The unusual nature of this presentation is emphasised in their review of a series of 22 patients with ependymomas of the craniocervical junction.

Symptomatic subependymoma of the cervical spinal cord. Report of two cases

Subependymomas are relatively unusual tumors with a distinctive histological appearance. They are generally considered to be benign, and they are often found incidentally at autopsy. Most are located intracranially, and the most common site of origin is the fourth ventricle. Only two cases of subependymoma of the spinal cord have been reported previously. The authors present two additional cases of subependymoma of the cervical cord; both were symptomatic, and both were treated by microsurgical removal.

Intraventricular tumors of childhood

Supratentorial intraventricular tumors in childhood are relatively uncommon neoplasms. They are generally benign lesions with certain anatomic predilection, producing symptoms by local expansion and obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid flow. Increased intracranial pressure occurs without focal neurologic deficit because of their relatively silent central cerebral location. The benign nature of supratentorial intraventricular tumors preclude a formal staging system. Listing of tumor type and anatomic location is sufficient.

Radiological features of subependymoma with emphasis on computed tomography

The features of 17 symptomatic subependymomas on X-ray computed tomography are described. Thirteen were reviewed from isolated case reports and 4 were original material. Over half were entirely intraventricular, 6 extended into brain substance and 2 into subarachnoidal cisterns. Twelve were isodense, 15 showed diffuse but irregular enhancement, and 5 contained nodular calcification. Large low density cysts, intratumoural haemorrhage and brain oedema were found almost exclusively in lesions extending into brain substance. It is concluded that subependymomas resemble ependymomas too closely on CT to be distinguished radiographically from them as a separate group. However subependymomas contain calcification slightly less frequently, and usually appear as mainly intraventricular lesions even when they occur above the tentorium.

Subependymoma in a 2 1/2-year-old boy. Case report

Subependymomas are extremely rare tumors in the pediatric population and, when they occur, they are usually of a mixed type with elements of subependymoma and ependymoma. This report is of a 2 1/2-year-old male infant with a pure subependymoma of the fourth ventricle.