Psychiatric Presentations of Central Nervous System Tumors

Abstract

Introduction

For the most part, central nervous system (CNS) tumors present themselves with focal neurologic sing or manifestations resulting from increased intracranial pressure. However, in particular cases, these tumors may present exclusively psychiatric symptoms.

Objective

This communication explores importance of CNS tumors as differential diagnosis of various psychiatric disorders.

Aims

Highlight the need of acknowledging this important differential diagnosis (CNS tumors) in current psychiatry practice, while presenting a clinical case as an example of the subject.

Methods

It is exposed a bibliographic review of the topic, followed by the description of a clinical case regarding a patient with pituitary adenoma and simultaneous installation of psychotic symptoms namely delusional paranoid ideation.

Results

The authors present a case report of a 66-year-old patient admitted compulsively in a Psychiatric ward in the context of behavioral changes associated with delusional ideation of paranoid content. Multidisciplinary assessed by specialties of Psychiatry, Neurology, Neurosurgery, Endocrinology and Psychology, concluded by the presence of nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma associated with cognitive major disturbance.

Conclusions

The tumors of the CNS can be associated with a whole variety of psychiatric symptoms such as psychosis, anxiety, depression or cognitive impairment, even in the absence of organic/neurological symptoms. Its role in the genesis of psychiatric symptomatology makes these neoplasias an important differential diagnosis, whose clinical approach should include different medical specialties integrated as a multidisciplinary team.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.