Posterior Cortex Deafferentation Following Surgical Disconnection Revealed by 18F-FDG PET/MRI Fusion

Clin Nucl Med. 2026 Mar 23. doi: 10.1097/RLU.0000000000006283. Online ahead of print.

Abstract

An 8-year-old girl was diagnosed with epileptic encephalopathy, which progressed to Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. She experienced daily episodes of behavioral arrest and frequent drop attacks, resulting in cuts and injuries. In 2019, she underwent a lesionectomy to remove a cystic lesion located at the edge of the right parietal lateral ventricle atrium, accompanied by parieto-occipital disconnection and posterior callosotomy. Anatomopathological analysis showed an ependymal cyst, a rare benign neuroepithelial lesion. Postoperative PET/MRI imaging revealed the absence of metabolic activity in the right parietal region and the lateral and polar regions of the basal occipital lobe, consistent with the deafferented cortex.

Keywords: MRI; ependymal cyst; epilepsy; epilepsy surgery.