Presentation
Past history of obstructive hydrocephalus treated with shunting. Now headache and lethargy.
Patient Data
Note: This case has been tagged as "legacy" as it no longer meets image preparation and/or other case publication guidelines.
Thin slightly hyperdense membranes paralleling the skull vault and cerebrum are a feature of chronic subdural hematomas.
A section of dura from the vertex of the skull removed at autopsy showing normal dura to the right of the sagittal sinus and chronic hematoma on the left containing a prominent membrane.
Case Discussion
Thin slightly hyperdense membranes paralleling the skull vault and cerebrum are a feature of chronic subdural hematomas, indeed pathologists rely on the detection of these membranes at autopsy to confirm chronic blood consistent with hygroma. The same can be used on CT or MRI, i.e. if extra-axial membranes are detected on imaging then there are definitely chronic subdural blood collections rather than just prominent CSF spaces or bland hygromas. In this case, they are probably the result of "overshunting".