Unusual intracranial foreign bodies. Report of five cases.

Five patients surgically treated for unusual intracranial foreign bodies are presented. They include representative cases of the three most commonly encountered types of these injuries: industrial accidents, suicidal attempts and the result of criminal assault. Immediate radiological examination is mandatory because the deceptively small entrance wound is usually in no way commensurate with the large size of the foreign body the presence of which is frequently not suspected. The surgical removal of these foreign bodies requires careful pre-operative assessment to avoid hemorrhages and undue injury to the surrounding normal brain tissue.