Diagnosis and differential diagnosis of central neurocytoma by MRI

Objective To evaluate the characteristic appearance and diagnostic value of central neurocytoma(CNC) on MRI.Methods MRI findings in 10 patients with pathologically-proved CNC were retrospectively analyzed and the relevant literatures were reviewed.Results 8 CNCs located in the lateral ventricle septum pellucidum,adjacent Monro hole,including 6 males and 2 females,aged from 21 to 45 years old,with an average age of 29.9.These tumors presented as hypointensity or equal signal intensity on T1WI and heterogeneous hyperintensity on T2WI and DWI.Cystic changes could be seen in all of the 8 cases,bleeding in 2 cases,beehive-like changes in 2 cases,snake-like flow void signal intensity in 4 cases.Moreover,6 cases demonstrated wire mesh or strips of abnormal signal intensity within the corpus callosum and the top of lateral ventricle on sagittal and coronal Gd-DTPA enhanced T1WI.7 tumors showed heterogeneous enhancement after intensified scanning.Another 2 tumors were extraventricular neurocytomas(EVN),which located in the cervical spinal cord,including one male and one females,aged 27 and 37 years.The main features of MRI were cystic changes,hypointensity or equal signal intensity on T1WI and heterogeneous hyperintensity on T2WI,and marked enhancement.Conclusion Intra-ventricular CNC had characteristics on MRI,reasonable consideration of these characteristics would be helpful to the diagnosis and differentiate the neurocytoma from other tumors residing in lateral ventricle.But,EVN in the cervical spinal cord defects characteristics on MRI,the final diagnosis requires pathological examination.