A pineal gland cyst is a usually benign cyst in the pineal gland, a small endocrine system gland in the brain. Historically, these fluid-filled bodies appeared on 1-4% of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans, but were more frequent at death, seen in 21-41% of autopsies.[1] But a 2007 study by Pua et al. found a frequency of 23% in brain scans (with a mean largest inner cross-sectional diameter of 4.3 mm), with an insignificantly higher frequency for women over men.[1] These smaller cysts (less than 5.0 mm) are usually asymptomatic, but for larger cysts (greater than 5.0 mm), possible symptoms could include headache, unexpected seizures, visual disturbances, muscle fasciculations, light sensitivity, circadian rhythm dysfunction, or hydrocephalus if the cyst impinged on the superior colliculi or caused obstruction of the cerebral aqueduct. In some cases this is normal and will not affect the human body. In most cases, it will need to be removed before more, life-threatening situations occur. Despite the pineal gland being in the center of the brain, due to recent advancements in endoscopic medicine, endoscopic brain surgery to drain and remove the cyst can be done with the patient only spending one night in the hospital, and being fully recovered in a week, rather than a year as is the case with open-skull brain surgery.[3] The National Organization for Rare Disorders says that pineal cysts larger than 5.0 mm are rare findings and are possibly symptomatic. If narrowing of the cerebral aqueduct occurs, many neurological symptoms may exist, including headaches, vertigo, nausea, muscle fasciculations, eye sensitivity, and ataxia. Continued monitoring of the cyst might be recommended to monitor its growth, and surgery may be necessary. *Meaning of Ataxia: (Is a neurological sign consisting of lack of voluntary coordination of muscle movements. Ataxia is a non-specific clinical manifestation implying dysfunction of the parts of the nervous system that coordinate movement, such as the cerebellum. Several possible causes exist for these patterns of neurological dysfunction. Dystaxia is a mild degree of ataxia.[1]) -Dysfunction of the vestibulocerebellum (flocculonodular lobe) impairs the balance and the control of eye movements. This presents itself with postural instability, in which the person tends to separate his/her feet upon standing, to gain a wider base and to avoid titubation (bodily oscillations tending to be forward-backward ones). The instability is therefore worsened when standing with the feet together, regardless of whether the eyes are open or closed. This is a negative Rombergs test, or more accurately, it denotes the individuals inability to carry out the test, because the individual feels unstable even with open eyes.[citation needed] -Dysfunction of the spinocerebellum (vermis and associated areas near the midline) presents itself with a wide-based drunken sailor gait (called truncal ataxia),[5] characterised by uncertain starts and stops, lateral deviations, and unequal steps. As a result of this gait impairment, falling is a concern in patients with ataxia. Studies examining falls in this population show that 74-93% of patients have fallen at least once in the past year and up to 60% admit to fear of falling.[6][7] -Dysfunction of the cerebrocerebellum (lateral hemispheres) presents as disturbances in carrying out voluntary, planned movements by the extremities (called appendicular ataxia).[5] These include: intention tremor (coarse trembling, accentuated over the execution of voluntary movements, possibly involving the head and eyes as well as the limbs and torso); peculiar writing abnormalities (large, unequal letters, irregular underlining); a peculiar pattern of dysarthria (slurred speech, sometimes characterised by explosive variations in voice intensity despite a regular rhythm). inability to perform rapidly alternating movements, known as dysdiadochokinesia. This could involve rapidly switching from pronation to supination of the forearm. Movements become more irregular with increases of speed.[8] inability to judge distances or ranges of movement. This is known as dysmetria and is often seen as undershooting, hypometria, or overshooting, hypermetria, the required distance or range to reach a target. This is sometimes seen when a patient is asked to reach out and touch someones finger or touch his or her own nose.[8] the rebound phenomenon, also known as the loss of the check reflex is also sometimes seen in patients with cerebellar ataxia. For example, when a patient is flexing his or her elbow isometrically against a resistance. When the resistance is suddenly removed without warning, the patients arm may swing up and even strike themselves. With an intact check reflex, the patient will check and activate the opposing triceps to slow and stop the movement
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 21:04:42 +0000
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