Journal of neurosurgery. Spine
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The minimally invasive lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas approach is increasingly used to treat various spinal disorders. Accessing the retroperitoneal space and traversing the abdominal wall poses a risk of injury to the major nervous structures and adds significant morbidity to the procedure. Most of the current literature focuses on the anatomy of the lumbar plexus within the substance of the psoas muscle. However, there is sparse knowledge regarding the trajectory of the lumbar plexus nerves that travel along the retroperitoneum and abdominal wall muscles in relation to the lateral approach to the spine. The objective of this study is to define the anatomical trajectories of the major motor and sensory branches of the lumbar plexus that are located outside the psoas muscle. ⋯ There is risk of direct injury to the main motor/sensory nerves that supply the anterior abdominal muscles during the early stages of the lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas approach while obtaining access to the retroperitoneum. There is also a risk of injury to the ilioinguinal, iliohypogastric, and lateral femoral cutaneous nerves in the retroperitoneal space where they travel obliquely during the blunt retroperitoneal dissection. Moreover, there is a latent possibility of lesioning these nerves with the retractor blades against the anterior iliac crest.
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no published evidence indicates when patients can resume golfing after spine surgery. The objective of this study is to provide data from surveys sent to spine surgeons. ⋯ the return to golf after spine surgery depends on many variables, including the general well-being of patients in terms of pain control and comfort when golfing. This survey serves as a guide that can assist medical practitioners in telling patients the average times recommended by surgeons across North America regarding return to golf after spine surgery.
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surgical correction of symptomatic cervical or cervicothoracic kyphosis involves the potential for significant neurological complications. Intraoperative monitoring has been shown to reduce the risk of neurological injury in scoliosis surgery, but it has not been well evaluated during surgery for cervical or cervicothoracic kyphosis. In this article, the authors review a cohort of patients who underwent kyphosis correction with multimodal intraoperative monitoring (MIOM). ⋯ in contrast to sensitivity and PPV, specificity and NPV were generally high in all 3 monitoring modalities. Both false-positive and false-negative results occurred. Transcranial MEP monitoring was the most useful modality and appeared to allow successful intervention in certain cases. Larger, prospective comparative studies are necessary to determine whether MIOM truly decreases the rate of neurological complications and is therefore worth the added economic cost and intraoperative time.
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Review Case Reports
Multifocal intradural extramedullary ependymoma. Case report.
In this paper, the authors present the case of a patient with multifocal intradural extramedullary ependymoma, and they review 18 previously reported cases. A 32-year-old man presented to the authors' institution with a 1-month history of partial medullary syndrome. Magnetic resonance imaging of the neuraxis revealed multifocal intradural extramedullary lesions at the bulbomedullary junction and C2-3, T5-11, L-2, L-4, L-5, and sacrum. ⋯ Intradural extramedullary ependymomas are rare, they predominate in women in the 5th decade of life, and pain is the most frequent initial symptom. The extent of resection and the presence of meningeal infiltration seem to be key determinants of prognosis. The present case is the first intradural extramedullary ependymoma (with the exception of those occurring at the conus medullaris and terminal filum) with multiple lesions at presentation.