Journal of neurosurgery
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The microsurgical anatomy of the jugular foramen was studied in 10 fixed cadavers, each cadaver consisting of the whole head and neck. Five of the cadavers were injected with latex. The jugular foraminal region was exposed using the infratemporal fossa type A approach of Fisch and Pillsbury in five cadavers (10 sides) and the combined cervical dissection-mastoidectomy-suboccipital craniectomy approach in five cadavers (10 sides). ⋯ The inferior petrosal sinus (IPS) entered the foramen between CNs IX and X in most cases; however, in 10% of our cases it entered the foramen between CNs X and XI, and in 10% it entered the foramen caudal to CN XI. The IPS terminated in the SJB in 90% of our cases; in 40%, the IPS termination consisted of multiple channels draining into both the SJB and internal jugular vein. This study shows that the arrangement of the neurovascular structures within the jugular foramen does not conform to the hitherto widely accepted notion of discrete compartmentalization into an anteromedial pars nervosa containing CN IX and the IPS and a posterolateral pars venosa containing the SJB, CNs X and XI, and the posterior meningeal artery.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Nov 1995
Comparative Study Clinical TrialDemonstration of neurovascular compression in trigeminal neuralgia with magnetic resonance imaging. Comparison with surgical findings in 52 consecutive operative cases.
Until recently, the inability to demonstrate neurovascular compression of the trigeminal nerve preoperatively resulted in surgery being offered only in cases of severe trigeminal neuralgia (TGN), frequently after a prolonged trial of medical treatment and following less invasive procedures, despite the fact that posterior fossa microvascular decompression gives long-term pain relief in 80% to 90% of cases. To assess whether vascular compression of the nerve could be demonstrated preoperatively, high definition magnetic resonance tomographic angiography (MRTA) was performed in 50 consecutive patients, five of whom had bilateral TGN, prior to posterior fossa surgery. The imaging results were compared with the operative findings in all patients, including two patients who underwent bilateral exploration. ⋯ It is concluded that MRTA is an extremely sensitive and specific method for demonstrating vascular compression in TGN. As a result, open surgical procedures can be recommended with confidence, and microvascular decompression is now the treatment of choice for TGN at the authors' unit. They propose MRTA as the definitive investigation in such patients in whom surgery is contemplated.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Nov 1995
Chronic postinjury administration of MDL 26,479 (Suritozole), a negative modulator at the GABAA receptor, and cognitive impairment in rats following traumatic brain injury.
The present experiment examined the efficacy of postinjury administration of MDL 26,479 (Suritozole), a negative modulator at the gamma-aminobutyric acidA (GABAA) receptor that enhances cholinergic function, in attenuating spatial memory deficits after traumatic brain injury in the rat. Two experiments were performed. In the delayed-dosing experiment, rats received a moderate level (2.1 atm) of fluid-percussion brain injury and were tested in the Morris water maze 11 to 15 days following injury. ⋯ However, those treated chronically beginning 24 hours after injury had significantly shorter latencies than the injured, saline-treated rats (p < 0.05). These results suggest that administration of agents that enhance cholinergic function may be an appropriate strategy for promoting cognitive recovery when given after traumatic brain injury. Furthermore, prolonged treatment may be necessary to elicit beneficial effects.