Percutaneous Ultrasound-Guided Aspiration of an Intracranial Abscess in a Neonate

A premature neonate delivered by cesarean section at 34 weeks of gestation with an Apgar score of 6 was transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit for signs of sepsis and respiratory distress. Blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and urine cultures were sterile. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the brain showed a well-defined, rim-enhancing, 19-mm  × 14-mm right occipital fluid collection, suspicious for an abscess (Fig 1). She was too unstable to undergo surgical drainage. Under intravenous sedation, bedside transcranial ultrasound (US) was performed via the posterior fontanelle, and a spinal needle (22 gauge × 3.5 inches; BD, Franklin L akes, New Jersey) was advanced into the fluid collection under real-time US guidance, avoiding the eloquent areas (Fig 2).
Source: Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology : JVIR - Category: Radiology Authors: Tags: Extreme IR Source Type: research