Object The authors report their experience in the treatment of 12 symptomatic patients with intradural spinal neurocysticercosis. Methods The mean age of the 12 patients was 33 years. There were eight female and four male patients. Cysticercosis was present in association with hydrocephalus in nine cases. In nine of 12 patients the spinal lesion was confined to the thoracic or lumbar spinal cord, and in three the cysticerci occupied the cervical region. In all patients with hydrocephalus nerve root symptoms developed seven to 48 months later (mean 27.6 ± 15.5 months). In one patient hydrocephalus was absent, but he presented with cysticercal meningitis 24 months before spinal cord compression developed. Presenting symptoms suggesting spinal cysticercosis included muscular weakness (67%), pain (67%), and sphincter disturbance (25%). Neurological examination demonstrated a motor deficit in nine patients, sensory deficit in four, and radicular pain in three. The prognosis was worse in patients with moderate-to-severe arachnoiditis and spinal cord compression compared with those with isolated nerve roots involvement in whom outcome was favorable. Ten patients underwent laminectomy, after which neurological status improved in 44%, remained unchanged in 33%, or worsened in 22.2%. Conclusions The authors discuss their findings in these cases. Additionally they briefly review the literature, patho-physiology, and therapeutic and/or surgical strategies involved in this disease.

This case report describes a patient with manic and psychotic symptoms who had a history of neurocysticercosis and presented with an episode of hypertensive hydrocephalus in 2003. Despite her history, she was initially treated for primary psychiatric disease.

RESUMO -Os autores apresentam sua experiência em 102 crianças com hidrocefalia de diversas etiologias, acompanhadas por 5 1/2 anos.Cerca de 80% dessas crianças tinham idade inferior a dois anos, o que possibilitou seu acompanhamento com a ultra-sonografia craniana (4,4 exames por paciente). Os resultados a longo prazo são comparáveis aos obtidos na literatura com redação ao número de procedimentos por paciente (1,66), índice de infecqões (5,2%), mortalidade (6,8%) e desenvolvimento intelectual.A ultra-sonografia mostrou-se útil porque é inócua, tem baixo custo operacional, é comparável à tomografia computadorizada nessa faixa etária, podendo ser repetida rotineiramente e permitindo um relacionamento entre o médico, a criança e sua mãe que afetam favoravelmente o diagnóstico precoce de complicações e a melhor compreensão da patologia pelos pais.Infantile hydrocephalus: long-term results in a series of 102 children with special emphasis on brain sonography.SUMMARY -A personal series (in 94% of the cases) of 102 children who underwent 170 procedures (1.66 procedures/patient) for hydrocephalus has been followed for 5 1/2 years (Jan-S3 to Jun-88). Most of the children were under two years of age (80%) and in these cases brain sonography was the examination of choice for both diagnosis and follow-up (307 examinations, 4.4 per patient).Only occasionally was computed tomography necessary for better study in these cases.Our results suggest that there was no significant difference between our cases and those published in the litterature concerning the number of procedures/patient (1.66)., infection rate (5.2%), mortality rate (6.8%) and intellectual performance. We recommend the use of brain sonography both in diagnosis and follow-up studies for hydrocephalic children since this examination is innocuous, inexpensive and easy to perform by neurosurgeons.Also it provides a good interaction between the examiner, the child and the parents, which is of utmost importance for the comprehension of the disease by the parents and early diagnosis of complications by the neurosurgeon. 5,8,11,32.