Brain Abscess Following Transorbital Penetrating Injury Due to Bamboo Fragments Case Report

• Published in: Neurologia medico-chirurgica Vol. 42; no. 3; pp. 143 - 146
• Main Authors: MARUYA, Jun, YAMAMOTO, Kiyoshi, WAKAI, Mikiko, KANEKO, Uichi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan The Japan Neurosurgical Society 2002
• Subjects: abscess; bamboo; Brain Abscess - diagnosis; Brain Abscess - etiology; Brain Abscess - surgery; computed tomography; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Foreign Bodies - diagnosis; Foreign Bodies - surgery; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Middle Aged; Orbit - diagnostic imaging; Orbit - injuries; Orbit - surgery; penetrating injury; Plant Stems; Temporal Lobe - pathology; Temporal Lobe - surgery; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Wounds, Penetrating - diagnosis; Wounds, Penetrating - surgery
• ISSN: 0470-8105; 1349-8029
• DOI: 10.2176/nmc.42.143

A 56-year-old female presented with transorbital penetrating injury caused by bamboo fragments, which resulted in brain abscess 2 weeks after the injury. Initial computed tomography (CT) of the head did not reveal the foreign bodies. However, follow-up CT demonstrated a well-defined hyperdense abnormality of 1.0 cm length in the left orbit and brain abscess in the left temporal lobe. The lesion corresponding to the hyperdense abnormality on CT appeared isointense on T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and hypointense on T2-weighted MR imaging. The bamboo fragments were surgically removed, and aspiration and continuous drainage were performed for the brain abscess. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was transferred to a local hospital with minor neurological deficits. Bamboo foreign bodies may show changes in properties on CT and MR imaging in the subacute stage. Careful radiological examination and follow-up monitoring are required for the correct diagnosis and treatment of such injuries.