Images in Clinical Medicine
Calcified Hematoma of the Skull
N Engl J Med 2008; 358:e5January 31, 2008
- Article
A 46-year-old man presented with a hard subcutaneous mass in the left side of the forehead (Panel A). He reported that the lesion had developed rapidly after a head trauma 24 years before and subsequently hardened without causing any other discomfort or showing any further growth. He was now presenting for surgical removal of the mass because of problems with wearing a protective helmet in his new job as a craftsman. Computed tomography (CT) of the head suggested that the lesion was a calcified traumatic hematoma (Panel B). The lesion was surgically excised from the tabula externa. Pathological examinations confirmed a calcified hematoma. Postoperative CT of the head (Panel C) and the clinical follow-up at 8 months revealed complete resolution of the lesion.
Ali-Reza Fathi, M.D.
Dominique Erni, M.D.
University Hospital of Bern, CH-3010 Bern, Switzerland
ar.fathi@gmx. net
