Intracranial en-plaque tuberculoma impersonating en-plaque meningioma: Case report and brief review of literature

BACKGROUND Tuberculosis of the central nervous system continues to be a major health hazard in developing countries like India. There are various manifestations of central nervous system tuberculosis including meningitis and space occupying lesions. We present a case of tuberculoma en-plaque which is often initially confused with a meningioma on presentation. We also review the literature relevant to this unusual entity. METHODS A search of PubMed, PubMed Central, the Cochrane Library, and MEDLINE were performed to identify all English language reports of intracranial en-plaque tuberculomas. The combinations of text strings "tuberculoma," "en*," and "plaque" were used to perform the query on PubMed. Only the studies reporting intracranial en-plaque tuberculomas were included. RESULTS Literature review revealed six reports on en-plaque tuberculomas including seven patients. The mean age at presentation was 40.5 years, and no sex predilection was seen. Five of the six reported studies used anti-tuberculous therapy with or without surgical excision of the mass. Most of the patients in reported cases recovered fully. CONCLUSION It is imperative to consider tuberculoma as an important differential when encountering intracranial en-plaque masses as en-plaque tuberculomas can be effectively treated with a combination of anti-tuberculosis therapy and surgical resection, yet consequences of a missed or late diagnosis can prove fatal.