The Brain Scan in Sturge-Weber Syndrome

Brain scans of 14 patients with Sturge-Weber syndrome showed characteristic abnormalities not related to intellectual development, calcification presence or site of nevus. The affected hemisphere's image is smaller, the overlying cap widened, and both more radioactive than the uninvolved side. In cerebral calcification regions, patients frequently displayed diffusely increased occipital uptake; some had discrete focal uptake. Hemisphere involvement and capillary alteration are deeper and more widespread than is usually indicated by either leptomeningeal lesions or cortical calcifications. The scan can localize major regions of hemisphere involvement but will not detect small lesions. Two case reports are offered.