Cysticercosis of the brain shown by magnetic resonance imaging

Fifteen patients in whom the diagnosis of cysticercosis of the brain was suggested by computed tomography (CT) were further studied with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Besides lesions in the substance of the hemispheres, cysts were found adjacent to and within the ventricles, the brainstem, cerebellum and subarachnoid space. Magnetic resonance imaging showed brain involvement out of proportion to what was shown by CT. The eccentrically placed mural nodule within a cyst, the pathognomonic lesion of cysticercosis, was seen in all cases with MRI. The various stages of development of the cysticercus larva were seen in one individual. An attempt is made to illustrate the various stages of development by means of MR images, and a possible pathological explanation is offered. The authors believe that MRI provides diagnostic information in this disease and dispenses with the need for enhanced CT examination.