Ventral brain-stem compression from a subarachnoid ependymal cyst

Abstract

A case of ventral brain-stem compression by a congenital subarachnoid ependymal cyst in an infant is presented. Marsupialization of the cyst provided effective decompression and clinical improvement. Immunohistochemical staining demonstrated the glial nature of the epithelium. The fact that these cysts may be congenital, as demonstrated here, supports the hypothesis that they arise from glial elements that have been displaced during development.

Retrocerebellar Ependymal Cyst Presenting with Obstructive Hydrocephalus in an Infant

“…Zehnder in 1938 reported the first case of an EC. 19 ECs is a rare entity with few documented cases, 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 and its prevalence or incidence rate is not reported. They are considered benign lesions of congenital origin.…”

“…2 5 8 9 18 22 To date, very few cases of fossa posterior ECs have been published. Cases have been described in the cerebellopontine angle, 6 7 9 12 13 14 cerebellar vermis, 10 cerebellar hemispheres, 11 pontomedullary cistern, 15 midbrain, 4 8 17 18 and fourth ventricle. 16 As far as we know, this report is the first to describe a retrocerebellar cyst in the literature.…”

“…Posterior fossa ECs are an extremely rare with only a few reported cases. 4,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case reported in the literature of a retrocerebellar EC.…”