title: Differential diagnosis of suprasellar tumors in children.
abstract: In contrary to the adult age the most common suprasellar tumors in children are with decreasing frequency craniopharyngiomas, chiasmatic/hypothalamic low-grade gliomas, germinomas and lesions attributable to a Langerhans cell histiocytosis. For differential diagnostic purposes also the rare hypothalamic hamartoma and meningeal metastases in the infundibular recess of the third ventricle are included. The typical aspects of the various tumors on computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) together with important clinical differences are illustrated. On the basis of imaging results and clinical symptoms differential diagnosis between the various tumor entities should be feasible in many cases. Of course, only in strictly defined cases like typical chiasmatic/hypothalamic and optic pathway gliomas or bilocular germ cell tumors a histological confirmation is dispensable.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroradiology, University of Würzburg.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Warmuth-Metz
authors.forename: A K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Gnekow
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Solymosi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000556:secondary; D002648:Child; D003397:Craniopharyngioma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004805:Ependyma; D005260:Female; D018237:Germinoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005910:Glioma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006222:Hamartoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006646:Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D007031:Hypothalamus; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010870:Pineal Gland; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed