Secondary dystonia following parenchymal brain tumors

Background: Secondary dystonia has been associated with diverse etiologies. Dystonia associated with brain tumors has not been well characterized.

Objectives: To characterize dystonia and relationship with parenchymal brain tumors.

Methods: We present six patients (1.03%) with dystonia related to parenchymal brain tumors, among 580 screened cases.

Results: Contralateral hemidystonia was observed in four cases, followed by focal limb (n = 1) and cervical dystonia (n = 1). Dystonia presented during the phase of tumor growth in four cases, and following tumor treatment in two, one case had re-emergent dystonia. Tumors were low-grade (WHO I or II) and located in the basal ganglia (n = 3), cortical areas (n = 2), thalamus (n = 1) and cerebral peduncle (n = 1).

Conclusions: Secondary dystonia may be caused by brain tumors in diverse locations including basal ganglia, cortex and thalamus. It may be the presenting symptom of brain tumor or follow surgical resection combined with ancillary therapy.