title: Sudden death due to subarachnoid bleeding from ecchordosis physaliphora.
abstract: Ecchordosis physaliphora (EP) is a rare intracranial mass derived from ectopic notochordal tissue. It is usually a fortuitous finding at autopsy or by computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging. Very few authors have described an EP-associated symptomatology. In this study, we report a case of the sudden and unexpected death of a 48-year-old woman. At autopsy, the cause of death was subarachnoid bleeding, the origin of which was identified as a gelatinous mass stemming from the dura mater and occupying the prepontine space. Further histological and immunohistochemical investigations allowed the diagnosis of EP.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Legal Medicine, University of Münster, Röntgenstrasse 23, 48149 Münster, Germany. Tony.Fracasso@ukmuenster.de
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fracasso
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Brinkmann
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Paulus
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D002817:Chordoma / Q000473:pathology*; D003645:Death, Sudden / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D049429:Forensic Pathology; D006261:Headache / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D013345:Subarachnoid Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology*