Symptoms of brainstem gliomas

summary

Brain stem gliomas account for 10% - 20% of all central nervous system tumors in children, mainly including diffuse brain stem gliomas (most common in pons) and focal brain stem gliomas (mostly in midbrain and medulla oblongata). Symptoms of brain stem glioma? Let's talk about it

Symptoms of brainstem gliomas

The location and growth pattern of the tumor determine the clinical manifestation of the patient. The occult clinical course can not be ignored: patients who often vomit may only show growth retardation in the end; The school-age children's academic performance decreased because of the visual changes caused by hydrocephalus; Children with cranial nerve involvement may not be found by patients and parents.

The frequent upper respiratory tract infection caused by slight aspiration may be caused by dysphagia caused by brain stem lesions. At the time of diagnosis, most patients had mild symptoms and signs for a long time, some as long as 14 years.

Most patients may develop neck stiffness or discomfort. What's more, the patient presented with torticollis. Unlike other brain stem tumors, more than 90% of tectal gliomas have hydrocephalus

matters needing attention

Nowadays, radiotherapy is still one of the main treatments for brain stem gliomas, which can usually relieve clinical symptoms, especially in children over 3 years old. After radiotherapy, the time of symptom relief was different, most of them were relieved within 1-2 months after irradiation, but some of them were aggravated. Therefore, we should pay attention to the local changes and systemic reactions of the tumor, whether there is brain stem edema and imbalance of water and electrolyte, and adjust the treatment plan according to the patient's situation.