LAUSR.org creates dashboard-style pages of related content for over 1.5 million academic articles. Sign Up to like articles & get recommendations!

Pneumocephalus with meningitis secondary to an old traumatic anterior cranial fossa defect

Photo from wikipedia

We report a case of a 30-year-old man who presented with altered mental status, fever, headache and vomiting for 3 days. An initial CT scan of the brain revealed the presence… Click to show full abstract

We report a case of a 30-year-old man who presented with altered mental status, fever, headache and vomiting for 3 days. An initial CT scan of the brain revealed the presence of pneumocephalus with a bony defect in the anterior cranial fossa. The pneumocephalus was not explained initially and the patient was re-examined for any signs of trauma to the face, and a review of the history revealed a series of three traumatic events months prior to this illness. Further laboratory studies revealed Streptococcus pneumoniae in the blood and bacterial meningitis. He was treated with antibiotics and was later taken up for endoscopic repair of the skull base defect. This case highlights the importance of recognising post-traumatic pneumocephalus with superimposed meningitis and sepsis months after a traumatic event to the skull base.

Keywords: meningitis; anterior cranial; cranial fossa; pneumocephalus; defect

Journal Title: BMJ Case Reports
Year Published: 2021

Link to full text (if available)


Share on Social Media:                               Sign Up to like & get
recommendations!

Related content

More Information              News              Social Media              Video              Recommended



                Click one of the above tabs to view related content.