Rate of resolution of histologically verified intracranial tuberculomas. 2003

Santosh Isaac Poonnoose, and Vedantam Rajshekhar
Department of Neurological Sciences, Christian Medical College and Hospital, Vellore, India. rajshekhar@cmcvellore.ac.in

OBJECTIVE The goal of this study was to determine the rate of radiological resolution of histopathologically proven tuberculomas treated with antituberculous therapy (ATT). The effects of the size of the tuberculomas, the number of tuberculomas, and the addition of corticosteroid therapy on the rate of resolution of the tuberculomas were also studied. METHODS Twenty-eight patients (age range, 5-48 yr; 14 male and 14 female patients) with histologically proven intracranial tuberculomas were prospectively monitored with contrast-enhanced computed tomographic scans. The patients received ATT consisting of rifampicin and isoniazid for a period of 18 months, with ethambutol and/or pyrazinamide for a minimum of 3 months. Fifteen patients also received corticosteroid therapy for 1 to 6 weeks. Of the 28 patients, 17 patients underwent partial excision, 6 underwent open biopsy, and 5 underwent stereotactic biopsy of their tuberculomas. RESULTS Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that, after 9 months of ATT, only 18.2% of the patients demonstrated complete resolution of their tuberculomas; even after 18 months of ATT, 69.2% of the patients had residual lesions. By 24 months, 54% of the patients demonstrated complete resolution of their tuberculomas. Although the number of tuberculomas, corticosteroid administration, prior treatment with ATT, and the duration of symptoms before presentation (<6 mo versus >6 mo) did not influence the rate of resolution, larger tuberculomas (maximal size, >4 cm) were observed to resolve more slowly than smaller tuberculomas (<4 cm) (P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS More than two-thirds of patients with partially excised or biopsied intracranial tuberculomas exhibited persistent lesions on computed tomographic scans, even after 18 months of ATT. Therefore, the duration of ATT for patients with intracranial tuberculomas should be based on the radiological responses of the tuberculomas. Our data suggest that some patients with intracranial tuberculomas might require prolonged periods of ATT.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D008875 Middle Aged An adult aged 45 - 64 years. Middle Age
D011446 Prospective Studies Observation of a population for a sufficient number of persons over a sufficient number of years to generate incidence or mortality rates subsequent to the selection of the study group. Prospective Study,Studies, Prospective,Study, Prospective
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D002675 Child, Preschool A child between the ages of 2 and 5. Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D004334 Drug Administration Schedule Time schedule for administration of a drug in order to achieve optimum effectiveness and convenience. Administration Schedule, Drug,Administration Schedules, Drug,Drug Administration Schedules,Schedule, Drug Administration,Schedules, Drug Administration
D004359 Drug Therapy, Combination Therapy with two or more separate preparations given for a combined effect. Combination Chemotherapy,Polychemotherapy,Chemotherapy, Combination,Combination Drug Therapy,Drug Polytherapy,Therapy, Combination Drug,Chemotherapies, Combination,Combination Chemotherapies,Combination Drug Therapies,Drug Polytherapies,Drug Therapies, Combination,Polychemotherapies,Polytherapies, Drug,Polytherapy, Drug,Therapies, Combination Drug
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000293 Adolescent A person 13 to 18 years of age. Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths

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