Medial Cranial Fossa Meningioma Diagnosed as Mixed Anxiety Disorder with Dissociative Symptoms and Vertigo

• Published in: Case reports in psychiatry 2016-01, Vol.2016 (2016), p.1-3
• Main Authors: Ceylan, Emin Mehmet, Evrensel, Alper, Önen Ünsalver, Bariş
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Care and treatment; Case Report; Case studies; Diagnosis; Magnetic resonance imaging; Meningioma
• ISSN: 2090-682X; 2090-6838
• DOI: 10.1155/2016/3827547

Meningiomas are mostly benign tumors of the meninges that may stay clinically silent or present first with psychiatric symptoms only. We present a case of medial cranial fossa meningioma that was first diagnosed as mixed anxiety disorder with dissociative symptoms and vertigo. In light of the intact neurological and vestibular system examination, our patient’s vertigo and depersonalization were firstly addressed as psychosomatic symptoms of the psychiatric syndrome. Despite decreased anxiety and improved mood, dissociative symptoms and vertigo were resistant to treatment which prompted further research yielding a left hemisphere localized meningioma. Resection of meningioma resulted in full remission of the patient proving it to be responsible for the etiology of the psychiatric syndrome and vertigo. We suggest that brain imaging should be performed for patients with late-onset (>50 years) psychiatric symptoms and those with treatment resistance. It is important to keep in mind always that medically unexplained symptoms may become explicable with detailed assessment and regular follow-up of the patient.