Parkinson’s Disease Onset Following a Post-traumatic Intracerebral Tension Pneumatocele

The entrapment of intracranial air from the check valve system results in a tension pneumatocele. Tension pneumatoceles should be distinguished from simple pneumatoceles because they are intracranial space-occupying masses that can threaten life. Head trauma is one of the causes in etiopathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease. Here, we describe a case of a 50-year-old man who developed Parkinson’s disease after a post-traumatic intracerebral tension pneumatocele. In the present case, Parkinson’s disease developed 6 months after severe head trauma and 5 months after detection of the tension pneumatocele. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of Parkinson’s disease developed after a post-traumatic delayed tension pneumatocele. Although the exact pathogenic mechanisms underlying the cascade following trauma remain unclear, Parkinson’s disease after a tension pneumatocele could be considered a possible complication.