Sudden death in an adolescent boy due to a colloid cyst of the third ventricle.

A 13-year-old boy died suddenly at night while asleep. A colloid cyst filled the third ventricle, obstructed the flow of cerebral spinal fluid, and led to prominent hydrocephalus. Acute ventricular distension with brain herniation resulted in death, whereas repeated previous episodes had led to cerebral compression and edema. Complaints included only episodic headache in the month prior to death. His pediatrician prescribed a course of Imitrex (sumatriptan) because of lack of neurologic signs or other symptoms and a family history of migraine headaches. The headaches persisted, however, and within 1 month the patient died. The difficulty of accurate clinical diagnosis in this case is common. Subtle signs or even lack of symptoms of increased intracranial pressure may prevent a timely diagnosis before the occurrence of deadly complications. This case report helps to remind both forensic medical examiners and clinicians that this entity, although rare, should remain in the differential diagnosis of headache in children and young adults and of hydrocephalus at autopsy. Timely diagnosis of this benign lesion can lead to a surgical cure.