ABSTRACT
The distinction between dermoid and epidermoid cysts, and also between dermoid cysts and teratomas, is not always clear in the literature, and some observers have grouped them together. However, in the brain, there are ample reasons to justify a separation of the former entities from teratoma. Admittedly, epidermoid and dermoid cysts may form a distractingly large element of pineal teratomas, sufficient to dominate the pathological picture. Thus, it is reassuring to note that the pineal gland is a rare site of pure dermoid and epidermoid cysts; these, as will be seen, tend on the whole to involve other regions of the central neuraxis.
