title: Melanotic neuroectodermal tumor of infancy discovered after head trauma.
abstract: Melanotic neuroectodermal tumor of infancy (MNTI) is a rare neoplasm that generally arises in the maxilla during the first year of life. Involvement of bones of the cranial vault or brain is extremely rare. We describe a 7-month-old black female who presented after falling out of bed onto a concrete floor. Subsequently, she developed an anterior frontal mass that enlarged over several days. Radiographs of the skull at her local hospital showed a depressed right frontal skull fracture. However, computerized tomography of the head (reviewed at our institution) revealed a slightly hyperdense extra-axial mass which crossed the anterior frontal midline, widening the metopic suture and extending into the anterior subgaleal scalp. Hyperostosis of the adjacent frontal calvarium was also present. A craniotomy revealed a dark, 1.5-cm calcified epidural lesion with some features of an unusual hematoma. Microscopic evaluation revealed a chronic hematoma and MNTI. The tumor recurred within a year. MNTI should be included in the differential diagnosis of epidural and skull lesions in infants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tenn. 37232, USA.
authors.forename: Paisit
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Paueksakon
authors.forename: John R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Gordon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Miles
authors.forename: Henry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: Curtis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wushensky
authors.forename: Mahlon D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D003399:Craniotomy; D004824:Epidural Space / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D020198:Intracranial Hemorrhage, Traumatic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D017600:Neuroectodermal Tumor, Melanotic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D011859:Radiography