Background and purpose: Pericallosal lipomas are rare tumors. Few reports have included their imaging characteristics. Furthermore, little is known about their evolutive course. Our purpose was to describe the imaging features of seven cases of pericallosal lipoma diagnosed in utero and followed up after birth.
Methods: We reviewed seven cases of pericallosal lipoma diagnosed by obstetric sonography (n = 7) and examined by fetal MR imaging (n = 5). Analysis of the complementary findings provided by fetal MR imaging was conducted. All findings were correlated with the postnatal imaging and clinical findings.
Results: Obstetric sonography easily showed the pericallosal lipoma in all seven patients. In one, however, it was misinterpreted as intracranial hemorrhage. The morphology and integrity of the underlying corpus callosum were less easy to assess by using sonography. Fetal MR imaging confirmed the fatty content and location of the lesion in all five cases. It showed the choroidal extension in two patients and the type of associated callosal anomaly in another patient better than did sonography. In two patients, the lipoma grew, as revealed by subsequent postnatal MR imaging. The results of the neurologic examinations remained normal for the five surviving patients at a mean follow-up of 3 years (1 month-9 years).
Conclusion: Obstetric sonography is able to easily show pericallosal lipoma. Fetal MR imaging may be useful to characterize the lipomatous nature and the extension of the lipoma and the status of the corpus callosum. Long-term follow-up is necessary to understand the clinical consequences of such lesions.