Journal of neurosurgery
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Journal of neurosurgery · Sep 2003
Comparative StudyIn vitro biomechanical effects of reconstruction on adjacent motion segment: comparison of aligned/kyphotic posterolateral fusion with aligned posterior lumbar interbody fusion/posterolateral fusion.
Posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) was developed to overcome the limitations of posterolateral fusion in correcting spinal deformity and maintaining lumbar lordosis. In this study the authors compare the biomechanical effects of three different posterior reconstructions on the adjacent motion segment. ⋯ Compared with kyphotic posterolateral fusion, PLIF may lead to even higher load at the superior adjacent level because of the increased stiffness of the fixed segments even if local kyphosis is corrected by PLIF.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Sep 2003
Review Case ReportsSpontaneous regression of symptomatic lumbar synovial cysts. Report of three cases.
Synovial cysts emanating from the lumbar facet joints may compromise the spinal canal and produce symptoms of radiculopathy or stenosis. Good results have been reported after excision of the symptomatic lesions. There are limited data, however, on the natural history involving nonoperative management and little information to suggest that these lesions ever regress spontaneously. The authors report on three patients in whom symptomatic lumbar synovial cysts spontaneously resolved and review the relevant literature.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Sep 2003
Multicenter Study Comparative StudySurvival following surgery and prognostic factors for recently diagnosed malignant glioma: data from the Glioma Outcomes Project.
The Glioma Outcomes Project represents a contemporary analysis of the management of malignant (Grade III and Grade IV/GBM) gliomas in North America. This observational database was used to evaluate the influence of resection, as opposed to biopsy, on patient outcome as measured by the length of survival. Attempts were made to reduce the impact of selection bias by repeating the data analysis after omitting patients with major negative prognostic factors. ⋯ These data provide Class II evidence to support tumor grade, patient's age, and patient's functional status as prognostic factors for survival in individuals with recently diagnosed malignant gliomas. Resection (compared with biopsy) is also a strong prognostic factor; however, no quantitative attempt was made to assess the true extent of the resection.