Intracranial physiologic calcification in pineal gland and choroid plexus in patients referred to CT scan ward of Imam Reza hospital, Birjand (1998-2006)

Intracranial physiologic calcification is not accompanied by any evidence of disease and has no demonstrable pathological cause. It is often due to calcium deposition in the blood vessels of different structures of the brain. Computed tomography (CT) is the most sensitive means of detection of for this calcification. The aim of this study was the assessment of the intracranial physiologic calcification in the pineal gland and choroid plexus. In this descriptive analytical study, the subjects under study were 412 patients (aged 1-98 yrs) that had undergone CT examination in Imam Reza hospital, Birjand University of medical science. Pineal gland and choroid plexus were evaluated for calcification. Data were analyzed by SPSS (11) at the significant level of P<0.05. Among the 412 cases, the incidence of pineal gland calcification was 62.62% and choroid plexus 63.34%. But, before the age of 45, the incidence of pineal gland calcification was more than that of choroid plexus. The frequency of pineal gland and choroid plexus calcification also increase with age. According to the results of this study, before the age of 45, incidence of physiologic intracranial calcification of the pineal gland was more than that of choroid plexus, but the whole incidence of the calcification was slighter in choroid plexus than in the pineal gland (1%). Prevalence of intracranial calcification in the pineal gland and choroid plexus can be critical in differentiating pathologic calcification from the physiologic one, particularly with respect to the age of patients.