IMPORTANT: We currently have a number of bugs related to image cropping and are actively trying to resolve them. In the meantime, we have disabled cropping. Apologies for any inconvenience. Stay informed: radiopaedia.org/chat

Fahr disease

Case contributed by Mostafa Elfeky
Diagnosis probable

Presentation

Tremors, imbalance and dementia.

Patient Data

Age: 55 years
Gender: Female

CT brain

ct

There is symmetric bilateral calcifications of caudate, lentiform nucleui (corpus striatum) as well as dentate nuclei in cerebellum compatible with Fahr's disease (familial cerebral ferrocalcinosis). There is no involvement of both thalami and subcortical white matter.

Case Discussion

The differential of basal ganglia calcification is relatively long and includes a number of broad categories such as metabolic, ischemic/toxic and infective etiologies. Fahr's disease is usually initially asymptomatic in most patients. However, various neurological symptoms may develop later in life, such as psychosis, dementia & movement disorders (parkinsonism).

How to use cases

You can use Radiopaedia cases in a variety of ways to help you learn and teach.

Creating your own cases is easy.

Updating… Please wait.

 Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.

 Thank you for updating your details.