Beatrijs De Coene

Whipple's disease confined to the central nervous system.

We report a 49-year-old woman with a leaft parietal lesion, shown on CT and MRI as an isolated ring-enhancing mass. The diagnosis of cerebral Whipples disease was made by brain biopsy; there were no gastrointestinal symptoms nor periodic-acid Schiff-positive inclusions in the jejunal mucosa. This case illustrates atypical Whipples disease, confined exclusively to the central nervous system.

Focal necrosis of the ureter following CT-guided chemical sympathectomy.

Focal necrosis of the ureter was observed in our patient 7 days after CT-guided chemical sympathectomy. The injection of phenol was apparently rendered remote from the ureter and still caused ureteric necrosis. Ureteric injury may thus result following chemical sympathectomy, not from direct puncture of the ureter, but from unpredictable individual diffusion pathways.

Hypoplasia of the internal carotid artery: a noninvasive diagnosis.

Abstract. We present the characteristic imaging findings of hypoplasia of the internal carotid artery (ICA) in two cases, one accompanied by an intracranial aneurysm. Finding of a diffuse luminal narrowing of the ICA on MR angiography or digital subtraction angiography (DSA) could wrongly evoke severe acquired diseases such as dissection or atherosclerosis. Absence of associated wall thickening and flow disturbances on color Doppler sonography (CDS) should suggest carotid hypoplasia. Confirmation of the diagnosis is obtained by CT of the skull showing a small carotid canal. Non-invasive procedures are sufficient to differentiate this rare congenital anomaly from acquired string signs.