Abstract

Rhinocerebral mucormycosis is an acute, fulminant, and often lethal opportunistic infection1. It is caused by one of the members of the mucoraceal family, including Absidia, Mucor, and Rhizopus2. It occurs only when immunity is critically low, likely uncontrolled diabetes, post transplant and immunocompromised patients. Clinically, presenting symptoms are nonspecific including headache, nasal blockage, nasal discharge and crusting, low-grade fever, facial swelling with loss of sensation of face, and orbital or paranasal sinus syndrome. After infection of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, the fungi cause a necrotizing vasculitis that extends rapidly into deep face, orbits, cranial cavity, and brain through skull base partitions and foramina2. When limited involvement of the paranasal sinuses is present, survival rates are between 50% and 80%3. However, when brain invasion has occurred, mortality is greater than 80%. Because of its lethal nature, it must be recognized early and treated aggressively. We retrospectively reviewed the neuroimaging findings in a series of ten patients with rhinocerebral mucormycosis to establish common radiographic patterns that may be useful in predicting the diagnosis of this infection

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