Neurosurgery
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Craniopharyngiomas are the most common benign histological tumors to involve the hypothalamopituitary region in childhood. When the tumor location is unfavorable, a gross total or partial resection followed by radiotherapy is the main treatment option in adults. However, it presents the risk of morbidity, especially for children. Intracystic bleomycin has been used to potentially delay the use of radiotherapy or radical resection to decrease morbidity. ⋯ Based on the currently available evidence, we are not able to give recommendations for the use of intracystic bleomycin in the treatment of cystic craniopharyngiomas in children. High-quality randomized, controlled trials are needed.
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The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) is a 6-level outcome scale used to assess level of function in neurological disease. ⋯ The mRS-9Q is a simple, easy-to-administer survey with a custom Web-based mRS calculation and error-checking tool. The mRS-9Q can reliably determine the mRS by hard copy survey or by telephone and can be administered by experts or nonmedical study personnel. The mRS-9Q can be used to measure functional outcome in a broad population of patients with neurosurgical and neurological diseases.
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Review Case Reports
Multiple aneurysms of thoracic spinal cord arteries presenting with spinal infarction and subarachnoid hemorrhage: case report and literature review.
Arterial aneurysms of the spinal cord are rare. Their pathogenesis is variable, and the therapeutic strategies remain controversial, because their natural history is unclear. We report a case of multiple dissecting aneurysms of radiculomedullary and radiculopial arteries presenting with spinal infarction and subarachnoid hemorrhage, which spontaneously resolved. ⋯ Arterial dissections of spinal radicular arteries can resolve spontaneously and be managed conservatively. We propose a classification of the pathogenesis of spinal arterial aneurysm to clarify appropriate treatment strategies by a literature review.