Neurological Manifestations of General Xanthomatosis

Abstract
THE central nervous system (CNS) may be affected in generalized xanthomatosis (Hand-Schiiller-Christian disease) in two-different ways. The most common involvement is compression of the brain or spinal cord by subdural deposits of xanthomatous tissue. The other is intracerebral or spinal infiltration by granulomatous-xanthomata. Although frequently seen in the postmortem examination, the subdural xanthomatous deposits seldom dominate the clinical picture. The purpose of this article is to report a case with neurological symptoms due to huge, multiple, subdural xanthomatous deposits. Report of a Case A 41-year-old man of Yemenite origin, married, and the father of four healthy children, was admitted for the first time to the neurological ward in February 1966. The past history was noncontributory, except for the fact that six months prior to his hospitalization he had fallen from a height while working as a construction laborer. No loss of consciousness or other sequelae were reported after