Periventricular Leukomalacia (PVL) is a type of brain damage that affects fetuses and premature babies. At this stage of brain development, the white matter surrounding the ventricles is particularly vulnerable to hypoxic (lack of oxygen) or ischemic (lack of blood flow) injury for a variety of reasons, including high metabolic demand in a location that is in a watershed area between the vascular territories of cortical and deep-seated vessels. In life, PVL can be detected on a head ultrasound. PVL can occur alone or in conjunction with other anomalies.
What other abnormality do you see in this brain? (answer below)
Answer: Agenesis of the corpus callosum, the major white matter tract that connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres.
Adventures in Neuropathology 
Leave a Reply