Neurosurgery
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We present a case of syringomyelia attributed to a transverse thoracic arachnoid web at T4. The cerebrospinal fluid pressure caudal to the web was higher than the cerebrospinal fluid pressure rostral to the web, causing a syrinx in the thoracic and cervical spinal cord above the web. ⋯ In patients with presumed idiopathic syringomyelia, imaging studies should be closely inspected for the presence of a transverse arachnoid web. Surgical resection of a transverse thoracic arachnoid web with syringomyelia can result in resolution of the syringomyelia and improvement in neurological function. Syrinx formation in patients with these webs may occur in the area of the spinal cord where there is lower cerebrospinal fluid pressure, which may be either rostral or caudal to the arachnoid web. We evaluate this hypothesis by comparing our case with other published cases.
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The optimal management of seizures associated with cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) is unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of surgery in the management of CCM-associated seizures. ⋯ Surgery is a safe and effective treatment for seizures associated with CCMs.
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Much has been written about the accomplishments of Walter E. Dandy, and he remains one of the seminal figures in neurosurgery. ⋯ What is not as well known is that Dandy was the first to accurately describe and treat lumbar disc herniation. He published a thorough clinical, operative, and pathological description in a 1929 Archives of Surgery article, titled "Loose Cartilage from Intervertebral Disk Simulating Tumor of the Spinal Cord." His publication predates by 5 years the well-known 1934 Mixter and Barr article "Rupture of the Intervertebral Disc with Involvement of the Spinal Canal."
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Biography Historical Article
Aurora Borealis (1865) by Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900).