Bernal García Luis Miguel, Cabezudo Artero José Manuel, Marcelo Zamorano María Bella, Gilete Tejero Ignacio
Departments of *Neurosurgery and ‡Intensive Care, University Hospital Infanta Cristina, Badajoz, Spain.
Neurosurgery. 2015 Jun;11 Suppl 2:E364-71; discussion E371. doi: 10.1227/NEU.0000000000000682.
The usefulness of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) for resection of malignant astrocytomas has been established in recent years. In addition to these tumors, it has been reported that 5-ALA fluorescence could be elicited in other tumors such as intracranial and spinal meningiomas or posterior fossa and spinal cord ependymomas, resulting in improved resections. Here, we present 2 cases of subependymomas of the fourth ventricle that showed intense fluorescence after 5-ALA administration. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first reported cases of subependymomas in this location in which 5-ALA elicited useful fluorescence.
Case 1 was a 61-year-old woman with a history of headaches accompanied by vomiting in the last month. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a tumor occupying the fourth ventricle with slight irregular enhancement. She was operated on after administration of 5-ALA. The tumor emitted intense red fluorescence when illuminated with blue light. An MRI performed 48 hours after surgery confirmed complete resection of the tumor. The pathological diagnosis was subependymoma. Case 2 was a 35-year-old man with a history of several months of headaches and vomiting. An MRI revealed a tumor occupying the caudal part of the fourth ventricle with moderate and irregular enhancement. He was operated on after administration of 5-ALA. The tumor showed intense fluorescence. An MRI performed 48 hours after surgery confirmed a complete resection of the tumor. The pathological diagnosis was subependymoma.
Fluorescence-guided resection with 5-ALA may be useful for resection of subependymomas of the fourth ventricle. However, further studies are needed.
