HEAD MASS

A localized mass on the head is usually a skin lesion, a lesion of the bone, or a protrusion of intracranial tissue through the bone. An extensive discussion of skin masses may be found on page 469, but most head masses originating from the skin are sebaceous cysts, caruncles, or lipomas. Lesions of the skull that may present as focal lesions are metastatic tumors, multiple myeloma, osteitis fibrosa cystica (hyperparathyroidism), and osteomas. Brain tumors, subdural hematomas, and epidural abscesses may cause proliferation of the bone over the lesion and produce a mass. Congenital meningoceles and meningoencephaloceles may protrude through defects in the skull, producing large focal lesions in the midline.

HEAD MASS

Approach to the Diagnosis

The approach to the diagnosis includes excision or biopsy of skin lesions, skull x-rays, CT scans, bone scans, and, if necessary, a bone biopsy. A neurosurgeon should be consulted before ordering expensive diagnostic tests.

Book Source Details

• Book Title: Differential Diagnosis in Primary Care
• Author(s): R. Douglas Collins
• Year of Publication: 2007
• Copyright Details: Differential Diagnosis in Primary Care, Copyright © 2007 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Other Book Chapters Related to Head symptoms

Read excerpts from these other book chapters related to Head symptoms:

Copyright Details: Differential Diagnosis in Primary Care, Copyright © 2008 Williams & Wilkins.

More About Causes of Head symptoms

• Back to symptom: Head symptoms: Introduction (review 6143 causes)
• Next Book Extract About Head symptoms: Headache (Handbook of Signs & Symptoms (Third Edition))
• All Book Extracts: All Online Book Extracts for Head symptoms

More About This Book: Title: Differential Diagnosis in Primary Care Authors: R. Douglas Collins Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Copyright: 2007 ISBN: 0-7817-6812-8

Rate This Website

What do you think about the features of this website? Take our user survey and have your say:

Website User Survey

Medical Tools & Articles:

Next articles:

• Headache (Handbook of Signs & Symptoms (Third Edition))
• Headache (A Pocket Manual of Differential Diagnosis)
• Headache (Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
• Headache (Professional Guide to Signs & Symptoms (Fifth Edition))
• Headache (The 10-Minute Diagnosis Manual: Symptoms and Signs in the Time-Limited Encounter)

Tools & Services:

• Bookmark this page
• Take a survey relating to Head symptoms
• Symptom Search
• Symptom Checker
• Medical Dictionary
• Give your feedback

Medical Articles:

• Disease & Treatments Search
• Misdiagnosis Center
• Full list of interesting articles

Forums & Message Boards

• Ask or answer a question at the Boards:
• I cannot get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for my condition?
• See all the Boards.

Enter your search terms Submit search form
Search The Web Search wrongdiagnosis.com

Common Health Mistakes

Symptom
Checker

Search Specialists by State and City