مننژیوم‌ها یک نوع شایع از تومور مغزی بوده که به آرامی در مننژ‌ها (پرده ای که مغز و نخاع را پوشانده و محافظت می‌کنند) رشد می‌کنند. اکثر مننژیوم‌ها خوش خيم بوده و مي‌توانند از لحاظ اندازه و موقعیت بسیار متغیر باشند.

علت ایجاد

دلیل بروز انواع تومور‌های مننژیوم نا مشخص است ولی گفته می‌شود عواملی وجود دارد که احتمال ابتلا به مننژیوم را افزایش می‌دهند. این عوامل عبارت‌اند از:

سن

مننژیوم اغلب در بزرگسالان شایع است اما می‌تواند در هر سنی اتفاق بیفتد. مننژیوم در کودکان نادر است.

جنسیت

زنان حدود دو تا سه برابر بیشتر از مردان مبتلا به مننژیوم غیر سرطانی می‌شوند. با این وجود، احتمالا تشخیص مردان و زنان مبتلا به مننژیوم سرطانی به میزان مساوی می‌باشد.

اشعه

تشعشع وارده بر سر ممکن است خطر ابتلا فرد به مننژیوم پیشرفته را افزایش دهد. منابع متداول تشعشع که می‌توانند باعث مننژیوم شود عبارت‌اند از: قرار گرفتن در معرض تابش به صورت اتفاقی و پرتو درمانی به عنوان یک روش برای درمان کرم سلولی بر روی پوست سر به نام سرفه تينا.

اختلالات ژنتیکی

افراد مبتلا به نوروفیبروماتوز نوع2 (NF2) رسیک بالا‌تری برای ابتلا به مننژیوم دارند. همچنین افراد مبتلا به NF2 احتمال بیشتری دارد که به مننژیوم سرطانی یا بیش از یک مننژیوم مبتلا گردند.

نژاد

افراد سیاه پوست دارای میزان مننژیوم بالا‌تری نسبت به افراد سفید پوست هستند. مننژیوم در آفریقا نسبت به آمریکای شمالی يا اروپا شایع‌تر است.

علائم

بیمار معمولا تا زمانی که آنها رشد نکرده یا به ساختارهای اطراف فشار وارد نیاوردهاند، هیچ علائمی نخواهید داشت. علایم شایعی که دیده می شوند:

سردرد

سردرد از علائم مننژیومی است که در حال تغییر سطوح فشار در مغز می‌باشد. سردرد‌ها از خفیف تا شدید تغییر کرده و مي‌توانند به صورت منقطع یا پیوسته اتفاق بيفتند. You may also sometimes have nausea or vomiting or difficulty concentrating.

Seizures

Brain shrinkage or swelling due to the growth or invasion of meningiomas can cause seizures or even epilepsy. Patients may experience involuntary muscle spasms or visual hallucinations, as well as fatigue or confusion.

Neurological defects

Neurological defects are more common when a conjunctival meningioma grows near motor and sensory areas of the brain. These tumors can affect your coordination, sense of touch, or strength in your arms and legs. Typically, tumors press on one hemisphere of the brain, causing symptoms on the other side of the body. For example, a meningioma pressing on the right hemisphere can cause weakness or burning in your left arm or leg. Also, if the tumor presses on the left hemisphere of the brain, which controls speech, you may have trouble speaking (finding words and understanding language). Other neurological problems include: memory and concentration problems, personality changes, lack of vision or diplopia.

Vertigo

Small supratentorial conict meningiomas are associated with vertigo. Fainting: Conjunctival meningiomas can affect cerebral blood flow, causing some people to faint.

Fainting

Syncope or fainting can occur when conjunctival meningiomas alter cerebral blood flow.

Diagnosis

Meningiomas are often discovered incidentally before the patient has any symptoms. The most common way a meningioma is discovered is when a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT) scan is performed following an accident, or when the patient reports symptoms unrelated to the tumor, such as headache, hearing loss, dizziness, and vertigo, among other neurological deficits. The tumor appears on the scan. A rapid neuroimaging of the brain is needed when patients have any abnormal psychiatric symptoms with late onset (over 50 years of age), first episode depression, or rapid changes in mental status. In most cases, an MRI provides all the information a person needs. Regular and periodic to monitor its growth is recommended.

Surgery

Surgery is appropriate if the tumor has symptoms or is growing and you are at an age where surgery is possible. There are several methods to remove meningioma, including craniectomy, mini craniectomy, and minimally invasive procedures and image-guided treatments. If the meningioma is large and has many vessels, embolization should be performed before surgery.

Surgery complications

Possible complications of surgery include: damage to the adjacent normal brain tissue, bleeding and infection. Important potential complications include:

• Temporary accumulation of fluid in the brain (cerebral edema) is common after meningioma surgery, medication may be prescribed to minimize this problem, before and after the operation.
• About 20% of people who did not have seizures before the operation will experience seizures after the operation. Anticonvulsant medication is usually recommended after the operation, and if the seizure does not occur after the operation, it will be stopped slowly. After the operation, some people experience neurological problems such as muscle weakness, speech problems, or coordination problems. These problems depend on the location of the tumor. Most of the time these symptoms will go away after a few weeks.

For people who have had brain surgery or have brain tumors, there is an additional risk of blood clots in the veins (deep vein thrombosis) and lungs (pulmonary embolism). As a result, treatments to prevent blood clots are recommended during and after surgery. Radiotherapy Radiotherapy is often recommended after surgery or if surgery is not possible. If surgery is performed, radiotherapy is usually started after the person has fully recovered from surgery. Radiotherapy uses high-energy X-rays to destroy tumor cells. X-rays are carefully directed to areas of the brain affected by tumors. Unlike normal cells, tumor cells are less able to repair damage caused by radiation. The treated part of the brain is carefully targeted to deliver the maximum amount of radiation to the tumor cells while delivering the least amount of radiation to normal brain tissue. Stereotaxic radiation therapy is a type of radiation therapy used to treat meningioma of the brain. This type of radiation therapy does not actually require surgery, but instead uses narrow beams of radiation that are sent from multiple angles. This allows a very high dose of radiation to be delivered to a small spot. Stereotaxic radiation therapy is offered as a single treatment or a limited number of treatments for small tumors.

Radiotherapy side effects

Unfortunately, radiotherapy cannot stop all tumor cells from growing without damaging adjacent normal brain tissue. Fortunately, side effects are usually not serious or life-threatening. Mild fatigue is common and usually does not last more than a few weeks after radiation therapy. Slight redness or burning of the skin may occur and is temporary. Headache and nausea rarely occur during radiotherapy and can be treated if necessary. Stereotaxic radiation therapy is very well tolerated, generally with minimal or no symptoms. The most common possible symptoms are short, mild fatigue and a temporary mild headache. Chemotherapy Chemotherapy is used in severe cases, such as when tumors are aggressive or recurrent. After surgery After surgery After surgery care can speed up your recovery. If you have meningioma If you have been treated for connexitis, you will probably be discharged from the hospital two to four days after the operation. Once you return home, you should be able to take care of yourself without a home nurse, nurse visits, or special home care. You should not drive or run errands for the first two weeks after being discharged from the hospital. You may have an appointment with your neurosurgeon 7 to 14 days after discharge to discuss your progress and your plans to increase your activity. Strenuous exercise is prohibited during the first two weeks, but you can walk for 20 minutes three times a day to prevent complications from inactivity and bed rest. Different people have different reactions to anesthesia and surgery. Most people return to work two to six weeks after surgery, or even sooner, depending on your recovery as well as the nature of your work, the length of your commute, and any other underlying medical conditions. If you have any neurological problems, rehabilitation is sometimes helpful. class="so-widget-orion_dividers_w so-widget-orion_dividers_w-base">