Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2013 Mar 25:4:37.
doi: 10.4103/2152-7806.109537. Print 2013.

Posttraumatic delayed subdural tension pneumocephalus

Volodymyr O Solomiichuk  1 , Vitaliy O Lebed, Konstantin I Drizhdov
Affiliations
Case Reports

Posttraumatic delayed subdural tension pneumocephalus

Volodymyr O Solomiichuk et al. Surg Neurol Int. .

Abstract

Background: Pneumocephalus is a complication of head injury in 3.9-9.7% of the cases, it also appears after supratentorial craniotomy in 100% of cases. The accumulation of intracranial air can be acute (<72 hours) or delayed (≥72 hours). When intracranial air causes intracranial hypertension and has a mass-effect with neurological deterioration, it is called tension pneumocephalus.

Case description: We represent a clinical case of a 75-year-old male patient with open penetrating head injury, complicated by tension pneumocephalus on the fifth day after trauma and underwent urgent surgical correction. Operation performed: Burr-hole placement in the right frontal region, evacuation of tension pneumocephalus.

Conclusion: Tension pneumocephalus is a life-threatening neurosurgical emergency case, which needs to undergo immediate surgical or conservative treatment.

Keywords: Computed tomography scan; cerebrospinal fluid leak; craniofacial trauma; head injury; tension pneumocephalus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CT scans on patients admitting to hospital: Fracture of frontal sinus and minimal pneumocephalus
Figure 2
Figure 2
“Mount Fuji sign”
Figure 3
Figure 3
Postoperative residual air
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Chandran TH, Prepageran N, Philip R, Gopala K, Zubaidi AL, Jalaludin MA. Delayed spontaneous traumatic pneumocephalus. Med J Malaysia. 2007;62:411–2. - PubMed
    1. Cho HL, Han YM, Hong YK. Tension pneumocephalus after transsphenoidal surgery: Report of two cases. J Korean Neurosurg Soc. 2004;35:536–8.
    1. Dandy WE. Pneumocephalus (intracranial pneumatocele or aerocele) Arch Surg. 1926;12:949–82.
    1. Hong WJ, Yoo CJ, Park CW, Lee SG. Two cases of delayed tension pneumocephalus. J Korean Neurosurg Soc. 2005;37:59–62.
    1. Horowitz M. Intracranial pneumocele. An unusual complication following mastoid surgery. J Laryngol Otol. 1964;78:128–34. - PubMed

Publication types