Anatomic and imaging findings The mass is usually located at the<unk><unk>  of the hypothalamus. The tumor is difficult to detect by CT due to decreased sensitivity of the scan at the level of the sella turcica. MRI is the primary imaging modality for detection, with the lesion being of similar signal intensity to gray matter and non-enhancing with contrast. Lack of enhancement is an important imaging characteristic to help distinguish the tumor from similar masses that can occur in this region. These include germ cell tumors, granulomas of Langerhans cell histiocytosis and hypothalamic astrocytomas, as these lesions usually demonstrate at least partial uptake of contrast.
Tuber cinereum hamartoma
Eruptive vellus hair cyst
Ectodermal dysplasia with corkscrew hairs
Rathke's cleft cyst
Ganglion cyst
Trichofolliculoma
Neuroma cutis
Fibrous hamartoma of infancy