A Case of Mesial Temporal Lobe Sclerosis Following Temporal Bone Encephalocele Repair for Medically Refractory Seizures

The aim of this report is to present a case of mesial temporal lobe sclerosis (MTS) causing medically refractory seizures, which was initially disguised as temporal lobe encephalocele secondary to prior otologic surgery. Temporal lobe encephaloceles are characterized by a defect within the middle cranial fossa that results in the abnormal communication of the meninges into the pneumatized skull base. After the temporal lobe encephalocele repair, the patient continued to have seizures and was subsequently diagnosed with mesial temporal lobe sclerosis. Imaging revealed the serial progression of hippocampal atrophy and loss of internal architecture. Differentiation between mesial temporal sclerosis and encephalocele as the underlying epileptic etiology is critical. While repairing encephaloceles is necessary to address other potential sequelae, patients with mesial temporal lobe sclerosis will require additional interventions.