Man, 44, shocked to discover he only has HALF a brain after common symptom millions suffer
WHEN a 44-year-old man began experiencing a common symptom experienced by millions, he decided to get checked out by medical professionals.
It was then it was discovered he was missing half his brain.
The unnamed man from the South of France had been living a normal life, complete with a career and family, when he began experiencing mild weakness and pain in his left leg.
When the feeling continued for around two weeks, he headed to hospital.
Leg weakness is common because it can be caused by a wide range of factors, including overuse from exercise, poor circulation, nerve damage from conditions like diabetes (peripheral neuropathy), spinal issues like a herniated disc, age-related muscle loss, and serious medical conditions like stroke or multiple sclerosis.
Doctors were concerned the man had a neurological condition that was affecting his nerve endings, but tests ruled this out.
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After doctors ran CT and MRI scans of his head, they were shocked to find a huge pocket of fluid where his brain was meant to be.
It was found the man was suffering a severe case of hydrocephalus.
On the scans of his brain, shared with medical journal , the main part of the his brain area appears black, which is where the fluid build-up was.
This then caused his brain to squeeze into a narrow layer, which pushed against the rim of his skull.
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As a result, his skull was also found to have enlarged.
Looking back at his medical history, at the age of six months, he'd undergone a ventriculoatrial shunt due to an unknown cause.
A ventriculoatrial shunt is a surgical device that treats hydrocephalus - a condition where there is too much cerebrospinal fluid in the brain - by diverting excess fluid to the heart.
But the cause of this was never identified.
When he was 14 years old, he developed ataxia (poor muscle control) and paresis (partial loss of muscle power) of the left leg.
The shunt was adjusted which resolved his symptoms entirely.
When his symptoms reoccurred in adulthood, doctors determined that he had a type of hydrocephalus caused by a blockage in one of the brain's drainage pathways.
Lionel Feuillet, a neurologist at the Mediterranean University in Marseilles, said at the time when the case report was published in 2007: "We were very surprised when we looked for the first time the CT scan.
"The brain was very, very much smaller than normal. This case is unique to our knowledge."
Dr Feuillet and his team said while they'd never encountered such a case, it was likely the man had the condition from birth.
His neurological development and medical history were otherwise considered normal.
On neuropsychological testing, the man proved to have an IQ of 75 - which is at the lower end of the 'normal' range.
But he was still able to function sufficiently, being a married father of two children, and working as a civil servant.
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Dr Feuillet said the problems with his left leg were a neurological symptom of the man's brain condition.
After treatment, in which doctors created a new drainage route for the fluid, the man made a complete recovery, although follow up scans showed no change to the size of his brain.
Symptoms of hydrocephalus
HYDROCEPHALUS is a condition where there is too much cerebrospinal fluid in the brain.
This can cause brain damage or death if left untreated.
According to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms can include:
- Headaches
- Vision problems
- Eye movements that are unusual
- Enlargement of the head
- Sleepiness or sluggishness
- Nausea or vomiting
- Trouble with balance
- Poor coordination
- Poor appetite
- Loss of bladder control or urinating often
Hydrocephalus can be caused by a number of factors, including brain defects, infections, injuries, and tumours.
It can be treated, with most common treatments being a shunt or an endoscopic third ventriculostomy.