Porencephaly is an extremely rare disorder of the central nervous system involving cysts or cavities in a cerebral hemisphere. The cysts or cavities are usually the remnants of destructive lesions, but are sometimes the result of abnormal development. The disorder can occur before or after birth.
Most infants show symptoms of the disorder shortly after birth.
Diagnosis is usually made before age 1. The prognosis for individuals with porencephaly varies according to the location and extent of the lesions. Some patients with this disorder may develop only minor neurological problems and have normal intelligence, while others may be severely disabled. Others may die before the second decade of life. The knowledge gained from these fundamental studies provides the foundation for understanding how this process can go awry and, thus, offers hope for new means to treat and prevent developmental brain disorders, including porencephaly.