Differential diagnosis of brain calcifications.
| Extra-axial calcifications | Intra-axial calcifications |
|---|---|
| Structures involved: | Structures involved: |
| ● Falx cerebri | ● Basal ganglia |
| ● The pineal gland | ● Cerebellum |
| ● Choroid plexus | Causes: |
| ● Habenula | Neoplastic: |
| ● Dura and arachnoid | ● Oligodendrogliomas |
| ● Tentorium cerebelli | ● Astrocytomas |
| ● Superior sagittal sinus | ● Medulloblastomas |
| ● Petroclinoid and interclinoid ligaments | ● Other primary brain tumours |
| ● Arachnoid granulations | ● Metastatic tumors |
| Causes: | Vascular: |
| ● Meningiomas | ● Angiomatous malformations |
| ● Dural osteomas | ● Arteriovenous malformations |
| ● Calcifying tumours | ● Dystrophic calcification in chronic infarction |
| ● Exaggerated physiological calcifications | ● Chronic vasculitis |
| ● Aneurysms | |
| Infectious: | |
| ● Congenital childhood infections, particularly TORCH | |
| ● Tuberculosis | |
| ● Parasitic infections such as neurocysticercosis and cerebral hydatid cyst disease | |
| Congenital: | |
| ● Sturge-Weber syndrome | |
| ● Tuberous sclerosis | |
| ● Lipomas | |
| ● Neurofibromatosis | |
| Endocrine/metabolic: | |
| ● Diabetes mellitus | |
| ● Hypoparathyroidism | |
| ● Pseudohypoparathyroidism | |
| ● Hyperparathyroidism | |
| Idiopathic/genetic: | |
| ● Familial idiopathic basal ganglia calcification. |