Canadian Association of Radiologists journal = Journal l'Association canadienne des radiologistes
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Thirty-two patients suffering from high-grade glioma were candidates for superselective cerebral arterial infusion of 1,3-bis-(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) after surgery and radiation therapy. There were 74 catheterizations using an 8-French guiding catheter through which a 2.5-French balloon catheter was placed into the main arterial trunk feeding the tumor. ⋯ Eighty-one percent of patients showed stabilization or improvement on computed tomographic (CT) scans five weeks after treatment. We thus demonstrate the safety of supraophthalmic catheterization, the feasibility of prolonged catheterization, and the relative effectiveness of low doses of BCNU infused over a long period of time in the treatment of cerebral gliomas.
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Twenty-one patients with cervical facet syndrome underwent 39 facet joint infiltrations with corticosteroids using fluoroscopic guidance. There were 22 intra-articular and 17 peri-articular injections. ⋯ However, symptoms usually recurred, specifically in 71% of patients with complete responses and in 42% of those with partial relief. There was no significant difference in response between patients receiving intra-articular or peri-articular injections (chi 2 = 2.283).
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Noncontrast computed tomographic (CT) findings in 10 patients with profound brain swelling or a mass effect revealed a high density of the falx and tentorium and thus suggested subarachnoid hemorrhage. Postmortem examinations performed shortly after the CT scans demonstrated no subarachnoid blood. A review of 100 CT scans drawn at random was carried out to assess the frequency of a hyperdense, noncalcified falx in the same population and failed to demonstrate this finding. Therefore, in the presence of profound brain swelling or a mass effect, factors other than subarachnoid hemorrhage may be responsible for increased density of the falx and tentorium on cranial CT head scans.