Porencephaly

Porencephaly
A disorder of the central nervous system involving a cyst or cavity in a cerebral hemisphere of the brain. The cysts or cavities are usually the remnants of destructive lesions, but are sometimes the result of abnormal development. The disorder can occur before or after birth. Porencephaly has a number of different causes including absence of brain development and destruction of brain tissue. The presence of porencephalic cysts can sometimes be detected by transillumination of the skull in infancy (when a strong light is shined through the head). The diagnosis may be confirmed by CT, MRI, or ultrasonography. More severely affected infants show symptoms of the disorder shortly after birth, and the diagnosis is usually made before age 1. Signs may include delayed growth and development, spastic paresis (slight or incomplete paralysis), hypotonia (decreased muscle tone), seizures (often infantile spasms), and macrocephaly or microcephaly. Individuals with porencephaly may have poor or absent speech development, epilepsy, hydrocephalus, spastic contractures (shrinkage or shortening of muscles), and mental retardation. An extreme form of porencephaly is called hydranencephaly. Treatment may include physical therapy, medication for seizure disorders, and a shunt for hydrocephalus. The prognosis for individuals with porencephaly varies according to the location and extent of the lesion. Some patients with this disorder may develop only minor neurological problems and have normal intelligence, while others may be severely disabled. Others may die before the second decade of life.
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The occurrence of cavities in the brain substance, communicating usually with the lateral ventricles. SYN: porencephalia, spelencephaly. [G. poros, pore, + enkephalos, brain]

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por·en·ceph·a·ly .pȯr-in-'sef-ə-lē n, pl -lies the presence of cavities in the brain

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n.
an abnormal communication between the lateral ventricle and the surface of the brain. This is usually a consequence of brain injury or cerebrovascular disease; uncommonly it may be a developmental defect, when it would most likely affect both lateral ventricles.

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por·en·ceph·a·ly (por″en-sefґə-le) the presence of one or more cavities in the brain, which sometimes communicate with the arachnoid space, most often occurring in fetal life or early infancy. Called also cerebral porosis, perencephaly, and porencephalia. porencephalic, porencephalous adj

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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Look at other dictionaries:

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  • porencephaly — n. an abnormal communication between the lateral ventricle and the surface of the brain. This is usually a consequence of brain injury or cerebrovascular disease; uncommonly it may be a developmental defect, when it would most likely affect both… …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • encephaloclastic porencephaly — porencephaly in which the cavities are residues of destructive lesions after birth …   Medical dictionary

  • schizencephalic porencephaly — porencephaly in which the cavities are the result of maldevelopment of the brain. Called also schizencephaly …   Medical dictionary

  • cerebral porosis — porencephaly …   Medical dictionary

  • porencephalia — SYN: porencephaly. * * * por·en·ce·pha·lia .pȯr .en sə fā lē ə n PORENCEPHALY * * * por·en·ce·pha·lia (por″en sə falґe ə) porencephaly …   Medical dictionary

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  • Schizencephaly — A developmental disorder of the brain characterized by abnormal slits, or clefts, in the cerebral hemispheres. Schizencephaly is a form of porencephaly. Individuals with clefts in both hemispheres, or bilateral clefts, are often developmentally… …   Medical dictionary

  • porencephalic — Relating to or characterized by porencephaly. SYN: porencephalous. * * * por·en·ceph·a·lic in sef ə lik adj relating to or characterized by porencephaly <a porencephalic brain> …   Medical dictionary

  • Syringomyelia — Classification and external resources An idiopathic syrinx. See the thin light grey shape inside the spinal cord, placed at centre in the bottom half of the above image. ICD 10 G …   Wikipedia

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