The rarity of colloid cysts in children makes it difficult to characterize this entity and offer meaningful advice on treatment. Infrequent case reports exist, but to date there has been no age-specific assessment. The purpose of this study was to define any differences between children and adults who are evaluated and treated for colloid cysts of the third ventricle.

Patients with colloid cysts were reviewed and stratified by age. Individuals ≤ 18 years of age were defined as pediatric patients and those > 18 years of age as adults. Clinical and radiographic data, treatment, and postoperative outcomes were compared between both groups. Bivariate analysis was conducted using the Fisher exact test for categorical variables and Mann-Whitney U-test for continuous variables.

Of 132 endoscopic resections (121 primary, 10 secondary, and 1 tertiary) of a colloid cyst, 9 (6.8%) were performed in pediatric patients (mean age 14.1 years, range 9–18 years) and 123 (93.2%) were performed in adult patients (mean age 43.8 years, range 19–73 years). Cases were found incidentally more commonly in pediatric than adult patients (66.7% vs 37.4%, p > 0.05), and pediatric patients had lower rates of hydrocephalus than adult patients (11.1% vs 63.4%, p < 0.05). Acute decompensation at presentation was found in 8 adults (6.5%) but no children. Complete cyst removal (88.9% vs 90.2%, p > 0.05) and length of stay (1.6 days vs 2.9 days, p > 0.05) were not significantly different between the groups. Postoperative complications (6.5% in adults, 0% in children) and recurrence (2.4% in adults, 0% in children) were rare in both groups, and there were no treatment-related deaths. The mean postoperative radiological follow-up was longer in pediatric patients (45 months, range 4–89 months) than adults (44.1 months, range 1–171 months).

While differences exist between children and adults regarding colloid cyst presentation, these are in keeping with the predicted evolution of a slow-growing lesion. Consistent with this observation, children had lower rates of hydrocephalus and a smaller mean maximal cyst diameter. Contrary to the published literature, however, sudden deterioration was not observed in pediatric patients but occurred in adult patients. In this limited pediatric sample size, the authors have not recorded any postoperative complications or recurrences to date. These encouraging results with endoscopic removal may positively impact future decisions related to children given their protracted life expectancy and projected rates of progression.

儿童胶体囊肿的罕见性使得难以表征该实体并提供有意义的治疗建议。很少有病例报告，但迄今为止还没有针对特定年龄的评估。本研究的目的是确定接受评估和治疗第三脑室胶体囊肿的儿童和成人之间的任何差异。

对胶体囊肿患者进行审查并按年龄分层。≤ 18 岁的个体定义为儿科患者，> 18 岁的个体定义为成人。比较两组的临床和影像学数据、治疗和术后结果。双变量分析使用分类变量的 Fisher 精确检验和连续变量的 Mann-Whitney U 检验进行。

在 132 次内镜下切除胶体囊肿（121 次初级、10 次二级和 1 次三级）中，9 次（6.8%）在儿科患者中进行（平均年龄 14.1 岁，范围 9-18 岁）和 123 次（93.2%）成年患者（平均年龄 43.8 岁，范围 19-73 岁）。偶然发现的病例在儿科患者中比成人患者更常见（66.7% 对 37.4%，p > 0.05），并且儿科患者的脑积水率低于成人患者（11.1% 对 63.4%，p < 0.05）。8 名成人 (6.5%) 出现急性代偿失调，但没有儿童。完全去除囊肿（88.9% 对 90.2%，p > 0.05）和住院时间（1.6 天对 2.9 天，p > 0.05）在各组之间没有显着差异。术后并发症（成人 6.5%，儿童 0%）和复发（成人 2.4%，0% 儿童）在两组中都很罕见，并且没有与治疗相关的死亡。儿科患者的平均术后放射学随访时间（45 个月，范围 4-89 个月）比成人（44.1 个月，范围 1-171 个月）长。

虽然儿童和成人在胶体囊肿的表现方面存在差异，但这些与缓慢生长病变的预测演变一致。与这一观察结果一致，儿童的脑积水率较低，平均最大囊肿直径较小。然而，与已发表的文献相反，在儿科患者中没有观察到突然恶化，但在成人患者中发生了。在这个有限的儿科样本中，作者迄今为止没有记录任何术后并发症或复发。鉴于儿童的预期寿命延长和预计的进展速度，内窥镜移除的这些令人鼓舞的结果可能会对未来与儿童相关的决定产生积极影响。