The prevalence of pineal cyst in patients with cerebral palsy

• Published in: Diagnostic and interventional radiology (Ankara, Turkey) Vol. 21; no. 3; pp. 262 - 266
• Main Authors: Özmen, Evrim, Derinkuyu, Betül, Samancı, Cesur, Ünlü, Havva Akmaz, Demirkan, Tülin Hakan, Haşıloğlu, Zehra Işık, Kuruoğlu, Sebuh, Adaletli, İbrahim
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Turkey Aves Yayincilik Ltd. STI 01-05-2015; Turkish Society of Radiology
• Subjects: Adolescent; Brain Diseases - epidemiology; Brain Diseases - pathology; Cerebral Palsy - epidemiology; Cerebral Palsy - pathology; Child; Child, Preschool; Cysts - epidemiology; Cysts - pathology; Female; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Male; Pediatric Radiology; Pineal Gland - pathology; Prevalence; Retrospective Studies
• ISSN: 1305-3825; 1305-3612
• DOI: 10.5152/dir.2014.14329

Pineal cysts are common incidental findings during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations. The etiology of pineal cyst development is still unclear. We aimed to determine whether there is an association between periventricular leukomalacia and pineal cyst prevalence.
Clinical and MRI data of 201 patients with periventricular leukomalacia (110 female, 91 male; mean age, 6 years; range, 2-18 years) and 687 control patients (355 female, 332 male; mean age, 6 years¸ range, 2-18 years) who did not have any evidence of periventricular leukomalacia were independently evaluated by two radiologists for presence or absence of pineal cyst.
Pineal cysts were detected in 32.3% of the study group (65/201) and 8.4% of the control group (58/687) (P < 0.001). Patients with periventricular leukomalacia were more likely to have a pineal cyst. In terms of pineal cyst detection on MRI, interobserver reliability was high between the two radiologists.
The prevalence of pineal cysts is higher in patients with periventricular leukomalacia. We suggest that an ischemic process may have a role in the etiopathogenesis of pineal cyst development.