Inflammatory thromboembolic complication after craniopharyngioma surgery?

Summary

Aside from endocrine or visual disturbances an appearance of other complications after craniopharyngioma surgery is rare. We report a case of delayed brain infarction in the postoperative period of craniopharyngioma resection. A 30-year-old man presented with visual impairment and diabetes insipidus. Imaging revealed a partly cystic, partly contrast enhancing intra-/suprasellar mass lesion. The patient underwent craniotomy with resection of the tumour. Histological examination revealed an adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma. Early postoperative an aseptic meningitis, which was diagnosed clinically as well as by laboratory and CSF analysis, resolved spontaneously. One week later a cerebral incident with infarction in the peripheral territory of MCA on the left side occurred. For this unusual event with a review of the literature a thromboembolic origin is suggested on the basis of inflammatory vascular involvement after an attack of aseptic meningitis.