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Arachnoid cysts in paediatrics
Shaheera Sarwar1, Joshua Rocker2
1PGY-2 at Cohen Children's Medical Center 269-01 76th Ave, New Hyde Park, NY.
Insights
Pediatric arachnoid cysts are common and usually asymptomatic, found incidentally via neuroimaging. While most require no intervention, understanding their clinical significance is crucial for informed family guidance.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric neurosurgery
- Neuroimaging
- Cystic lesions of the central nervous system
Background:
- Arachnoid cysts are increasingly detected in children due to advanced neuroimaging.
- Understanding their clinical implications is vital for patient management and family counseling.
Conclusions:
- The majority of pediatric arachnoid cysts are incidental and asymptomatic, requiring no treatment.
- Close follow-up with neurosurgery is recommended to assess clinical significance.
- Ongoing research focuses on cyst origin, novel treatments, and long-term outcomes.
Purpose Of Review:
Arachnoid cysts are incidentally found on neuroimaging at an increasing rate in the paediatric population. Hence, learning their clinical implications to better inform families is important. The purpose of this review is to outline the current understanding of epidemiology, disease and clinical features based on location, imaging and management of arachnoid cysts in paediatrics.
Recent Findings:
The prevalence of arachnoid cysts is 2.6% in paediatrics, with greater than 90% being asymptomatic. When they do cause symptoms, it is based primarily on their location and size. The most accurate diagnostic modality is MRI. Recent literature focuses primarily on the origin of arachnoid cysts, new approaches to treating symptomatic arachnoid cysts and long-term implications for patients.
Summary:
Incidental arachnoid cysts are being found most often due to the more frequent use of neuroimaging. There is a higher prevalence for arachnoid cysts in men and they are more commonly found on the left side. Despite their impressive size or location, greater than 90% of these lesions are asymptomatic and require no intervention. However, follow up with neurosurgery to help determine the clinical significance of these lesions is essential.
