Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 1997, 182 (2)

Case Report

A Case of Marchiafava-Bignami Disease with Complete Recovery: Sequential Imaging Documenting Improvement of Callosal Lesions

MUNESHIGE TOBITA1,2, HIROSHI MOCHIZUKI2, SHOKI TAKAHASHI3, HIROSHI ONODERA1, YASUTO ITOYAMA1 and YUZO IWASAKI2

1Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai 980-77, 2Department of Neurology, Miyagi National Hospital, Miyagi 989-22, and 3Department of Radiology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai 980-77

  • Serial CT and MR imaging findings in a 44-year-old woman with Marchiafava-Bignami disease (MBD) are reported. In the acute stage, CT studies disclosed subtle hypodensity in the splenium, and T2-weighted MR images revealed apparent high signal intensity of the splenium and the central portion of the corpus callosum. Treatment with vitamin B complex resulted in complete recovery. T2-weightcd MR images obtained three weeks after admission revealed dramatic resolution of imaging abnormalities, with only faint high signal intensity remaining in the splenium. The sequential changes observed on CT and MR images provided early diagnosis of MBD and the resolution of the lesion considered as brain edema, which suggested that edema might, in addition to demyelination or necrosis, be involved in the acute progression of MBD.
    Key words--- Marchiafava-Bignami disease; corpus callosum; alcoholism; MRI; CT
    © 1997 Tohoku University Medical Press

    Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 1997, 182, 175-179
    Address for reprints: Muneshige Tobita, M.D., Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryomachi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-77, Japan.

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