Late detection of cerebral glioma causing seizures in childhood. A case report

Late detection of a cerebral glioma causing convulsions in a 7-year-old girl is reported. Her neurological status was normal but her behaviour deteriorated progressively and her seizures became more frequent and resistant to therapy during the 11/2 years after her first admission to hospital. Computed tomography revealed a zone of low density in the right parietal area which was considered to be due to a cerebrovascular accident affecting the middle cerebral artery. Although it is generally considered that epilepsy beginning in infancy or childhood, even if focal, is only rarely associated with neoplasm, epilepsy which is resistant to treatment and progressive change in a child's behaviour should suggest the possibility of a cerebral neoplasm and further invasive investigations should be performed.