General Anesthesia in Left Thyroid Lobectomy Unmasking Intracranial Pathology

Representing about 20 percent of all primary brain tumors, meningiomas comprise a large portion of neoplasms. They are the most common tumor originating in the central nervous system and exhibit a varying clinical presentation. Additionally, meningiomas demonstrate a benign clinical course which contributes to difficulties in its detection and diagnosis. We describe the case report of a 42-year-old woman who begins to display symptoms of an intracranial mass suddenly after a left thyroid lobectomy under general anesthesia. MRI and CTA are helpful in the diagnosis, while steroids, surgery, and radiation are utilized as treatment. With no signs of this mass prior to the surgical procedure, the use of opioids, supine positioning, intraoperative fluid management and post-operative analgesics may prove dangerous and could contribute to this rapid presentation.