Cerebral cysticercosis with reference to the natural history of parenchymal lesions.

The cerebral parenchymal response to degeneration of cysticerci was studied in 83 consecutive patients investigated over 5 1/2 years. Virtually all came from an endemic region of South Africa and 67% were children. Occasionally, computed tomography (CT) delineated an inert shower of cysticerci. The humoral and tissue reactions resulting from larval death cause intense cerebral edema and granulomata, which manifest particularly in the pediatric age group. Local and diffuse cerebral edema has not been stressed before nor has its incidence been evaluated. The shortest interval between cysticercal degeneration and its granulomatous response to the final radiographic calcification was found to be 25 months.