• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.237-245
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• 2000

Tuberculomas in the spine are estimated to be 15 to 50 times less common than those occurring in the cranium. We experienced a case of intramedullary spinal tuberculoma and brain tuberculoma associated with pulmonary tuberculosis. A 39-year-old male was referred to the National Medical Center via emergency room because of urinary difficulty lower limb weakness for 3 days. He had been treated with anti-tuberculosis regimens against pulmonary tuberculosis for 20 days. Spinal MRI revealed intradural intramedullary tuberculoma at T5. On the 21st day at the hospital, a generalized seizure attacked him. Brain MRI revealed multiple tuberculoma in both hemispheres, brainstem and cerebellum. He was treated anti-tuberculosis regimens and corticosteroids for 9 months. His condition improved clinically and radiologically. We report this case with a review of the literature.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.307-310
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• 2015

We report a case of a paradoxical response of a tuberculoma in the brain mimicking a brain tumor. A 76-year-old woman presented with a 2 week history of headache, dysarthia, and orthopnea. Brain magnetic resonance images (MRI) revealed two rim-enhancing lesions on the pons and occipital lobe, and chest computed tomography showed randomly distributed miliary nodules. The tentative diagnosis was tuberculosis (TB) of the brain and lung. She complained of right hemiparesis and worsening general weakness after taking the anti-TB medication. On the monthly follow-up images, the enhanced lesions were enlarged with increased perfusion and choline/creatinine ratio, suggesting a high grade glioma. A surgical resection was completed to diagnose the occipital lesion, and the tuberculoma was pathologically confirmed by a positive TB-polymerase chain reaction. The anti-TB medication was continued for 13 months. A follow-up MRI showed decreased size of the brain lesions associated with perilesional edema, and the clinical symptoms had improved. Brain tuberculoma could be aggravated mimicking brain malignancy during administration of anti-TB medication. This paradoxical response can be effectively managed by continuing the anti-TB drugs.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.36-39
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• 2008

Although tuberculosis of the central nervous system is well known, the incidence of intramedullary tuberculomas is low and a combination of intramedullary with intracranial tuberculomas is extremely rare. We report a case of disseminated tuberculoma involving brain and spine with miliary pulmonary tuberculosis in a 66-year-old woman initially presenting with fever, general weakness, back pain and motor weakness of both lower extremities. Despite medical therapy, she developed progressive motor weakness of both lower extremities with muscle strength 1/5 in both lower extremities. Urgent surgical intervention was followed and her muscle power and motor functions were improved gradually. The anti-tuberculous drugs were continued and the follow-up magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of brain and spine showed that the lesions had become smaller or disappeared.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.529-533
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• 2000

Intracranial tuberculoma is very rare nowadays. It is very difficult to differentiate tuberculoma from other space-occupying lesions. CT and MRI and intensive systemic review is very useful to diagnose intracranial tuberculoma. This case of patient had several symptoms of hemiparesis, headache. And we supposed that his symptoms were due to cerebrovascular accident at entry. But he was diagnosed as tuberculoma with brain edema in cerebrum. After treating him with mannitolization, acupuncture and herb medicine, his symptoms were remarkably improved. So we report this case of tuberculoma in cerebrum.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.236-242
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• 1996

Intracranial tuberculoma results from hematogenous spread of pulmonary, intestinal or urogenital tuberculosis. However, it might be caused by pulmonary tuberculosis, mainly. Clinically, symptoms of intracranial tuberculoma are headache and seizure, its symptoms are simillar to intracranial tumor. A 25-year-old-unmarried shopgirl was visited to this hospital because of headache, dizziness and visual disturbance for couple weeks in Sep. 1995. She had been treated with anti-tuberculosis agents of miliary tuberculosis during past nine months period. Brain MRI revealed intracranial tuberculoma and brain edema but not involved optic nerve. Ophthalmic examination revealed severe papilledema and splinter hemorrhage with bitemporal hemianopsis and central scotoma. This finding was strongly suggested of optic disc tuberculoma. Her symptoms became much better following repeated retrobulbar steroid injection with continuous anti-tuberculosis agents. We report a interesting case with intracranial tuberculoma and optic disc tuberculoma associated by miliary tuberculosis during anti-tuberculous treatment.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.260-264
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• 2001

Background : Paradoxical intracranial tuberculoma is tuberculoma that developed or was enlarged during antituberculous therapy. The course of the disease or effective treatment are not well known. Method : Patients who developed intracranial tuberculoma or an enlarged tuberculoma during antituberculous therapy were investigated. Ten patients were enrolled. Result : Paradoxical intracranial tuberculoma was detected 67.9 days after antituberculous therapy. The symptoms worsened over a period of 102.3 days. Improvement was noted after 165.4 days. Four patients recovered on the brain image and 4 recovered clinically. The CSF findings showed that the paradoxical tuberculomas had developed or were aggravated, the CSF findings was aggravated. Conclusion : Paradoxical intracranial tuberculoma can develop without specific symptoms. Paradoxical intracranial tuberculoma may not be a paradoxical response and may be a natural course of intracranial tuberculosis or a natural response to antituberculous therapy.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.247-252
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• 2001

Although the incidence of tuberculosis has been decreased, it is still an important community acquired infectious disease in the world. Miliary or disseminated tuberculosis occurs from the inadequacy of host defense in controling tuberculous infection. Generally, brain parenchyme has been considered to be a rare involving organ than other organs or meninges in miliary tuberculosis. However it has been proving that the brain parenchyme is commonly involved organ in miliary tuberculosis even without neurological manifestations. We report a case of 8 yr-old male patient, who was diagnosed as having an miliary tuberculosis with multiple tuberculoma throughout the brain. The tuberculous lesions of lung and brain were nearly cleared within 3 months with anti-tuberculous therapy. With a reveiw of related literatures, we suggest that the patients with miliary tuberculosis should be evaluateded about brain involvement.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.250-256
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• 2000

The incidence of tuberculosis has been decreased, and especially the incidence of severe complicated tuberculosis has been markedly decreased as the result of widely used BCG vaccines. But tuberculosis is still an important community accquired infectiouse disease in the world despite continued worldwide efforts to control the disease. Miliary tuberculosis, the most serious complicated tuberculosis, can be occurred by lymphohematogenous dissemination of tuberculosis, and intracranial tuberculoma with or without tuberculosis meningitis can be developed in case of miliary tuberculosis. In general, serious tuberculosis infections such as miliary tuberculosis and CNS tuberculosis are developed especially in young infants and children in cases of delayed diagnosis and treatment despite receiving BCG vaccination, and usually those patients have contact sources. Intrcranial tuberculoma in children are usually found near infratentorial site at the base of cerebellum, and clinically symptoms and signs of increased intracranial pressure developed before treatment. Serial brain CT or MRI is a good non-invasive diagnostic modality of intracranial tuberculoma. Although surgical intervention was initially advocated as the mainstay of intracranial tuberculoma therapy, but many recent clinical studies indicate that intracranial tuberculoma can be cured with medical treatment alone. We experienced a case of 3 months old male patient, who was diagnosed as having miliary tuberculosis associated with multiple intracranial tuberculoma. He received BCG vaccination at 4 weeks after birth, and his father was confirmed as active pulmonary tuberculosis patient after this patient's admission. We report this case with a review of related literatures.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.117-121
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• 2002

Although the incidence of intracranial tuberculosis in children have been decreased with development of antituberculous therapy, mortality rate is still high as formerly if the diagnosis and treatment was not performed early. Authors report a case of a 5-month old male with multiple intracranial tuberculoma who have been accompanied by miliary tuberculosis and tuberculous meningitis. He was hospitalized at the pediatric department of Wonkwang University Hospital with mild fever and persistent cough. The brain MRI was performed and showed that there were multiple intracranial micronodular densities, perinodular edema and diffuse leptomeningeal enhancement which were disappeared completely after antituberculosis chemotherapy for 12 months and he had completely recovered without sequale.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.371-380
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• 2000

Purpose: Thallim-201 ($^{201}Tl$) brain SPECT, which can represent cellular activity of brain lesions, may provide more useful information in differentiating between benign and malignant brain lesions more so than CT of MRI, that merely represents anatomic changes or breakdown of blood brain barrier. We used $^{201}Tl$ brain SPECT prospectively to evaluate the utility of $^{201}Tl$-indices as an indicator of benign or malig nant lesions. Materials and Methods: We studied 28 patients. There were 13 cases of benign lesions (3: nonspecific benign lesion, 3: meningioma, 2: low grade glioma, 1: tuberculoma, central neurocytoma, hemangioblastoma, radiation necrosis, and choroid plexus papilloma) and 15 cases of malignant lesions (6: glioblastoma multiforme, 5: anaplastic glioma, 2: medulloblastoma, 1: metastasis and lymphoma). In all patients, CT and/or MRI were obtained and then $^{201}Tl$ brain SPECT was obtained with measuring mean $^{201}Tl$ index and peak $^{201}Tl$ index. An unpaired t-test was performed to compare the $^{201}Tl$-indices and pathologic diagnoses to evaluate the utility of $^{201}Tl$-indices as all indicator of benign or malignant lesions. Results: There were no statistically significant difference in $^{201}Tl$-indices between benign and malignant brain lesion (p>0.05). Conclusion: These results demonstrated that we could not use $^{201}Tl$ indices on brain SPECT alone as an indicator of benign or malignant brain lesions.