Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia
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Intra-arterial (IA) therapy for stroke is an increasingly utilised management approach for acute ischaemic stroke. We aimed to correlate radiological characteristics and recanalisation success with radiological and functional outcomes at 90 days in patients treated with IA therapy. This was a single centre, retrospective study investigating the correlation between pre-procedural Computed Tomography-Angiogram Source Image (CTA-SI) Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (ASPECTS), recanalisation success, and functional outcome at 90 days in patients with an acute ischaemic stroke from 2007-2012. ⋯ Patients with high pre-procedural CTA-SI ASPECTS are significantly more likely to have high post-procedural NCCT score (OR 23.36, 95% CI: 3.26-166.92, p=0.002). Recanalisation success was strongly associated with good clinical outcome, unaffected by known predictive factors, which included age and stroke severity. This association was unattenuated by CTA-SI ASPECTS.
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Sickle cell disease can present with neurological manifestations. One such presentation is with posterior reversible leukoencephalopathy also known as reversible posterior leukoencephalopathy. ⋯ Only a few patients with the association between sickle cell disease and posterior reversible leukoencephalopathy have been described in the adult literature. We present two patients from our institutions to emphasise the association between the two conditions and summarise the published cases in the literature.
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The conventional technique of intracranial aneurysm embolization using Onyx HD-500 (ev3 Neurovascular, Irvine, CA, USA) involves repetitive balloon inflation-deflation cycles under general anesthesia. By limiting parent artery occlusion to 5 minutes, this cyclic technique is thought to minimize cerebral ischemia. However, intermittent balloon deflation may lengthen procedure time and allow balloon migration, resulting in intimal injury or Onyx leakage. ⋯ Permanent non-disabling neurological morbidity occurred in one patient (4.2%). Minor, transient, and/or angiographic complications were seen in three patients (12.5%), none related to the technique itself. Onyx embolization of unruptured intracranial aneurysms can be safely and effectively performed using continuous balloon inflation under conscious sedation.
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We investigated the short-term postoperative cognitive function of patients with unilateral mesial temporal lobe epilepsy associated with hippocampal sclerosis (MTLE/HS). Fourteen unilateral MTLE/HS patients who had undergone selective amygdalohippocampectomy (SAH) or anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL) were enrolled. Cognitive functions related to the frontal and temporal lobes were evaluated using a battery of neuropsychological tests administered before surgery and 3months after surgery. ⋯ Based on cognitive evaluation, right-sided MTLE/HS patients may be more appropriate surgical candidates than left-sided MTLE/HS patients. SAH may not be better than ATL in improving cognitive function. We hypothesise that postoperative cognitive changes depend on whether the excised cerebral regions are related to the neuropsychological functions examined by specific assessment instruments.
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Stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) has advantages for exploring deeper epileptic foci. Nevertheless, SEEG can only sample isolated cortical areas and its spatial limitation, with the inability to record contiguous cortical regions, may cause difficulties in interpretation. In light of these limitations, the authors describe the hybrid technique of SEEG and subdural strip electrode placement. ⋯ The dura was opened and, under live fluoroscopic guidance, strip electrodes were slid into the subdural space. In these patients, the additional subdural strip electrodes provided (1) information regarding the precise description of seizure spread in the cortical surface adjacent to the subdural space, (2) identification of epileptogenic zones located near the crown, (3) more precise definition of functional cortex and (4) a better delineation of the interface between epileptogenic zones and functional cortex. This hybrid technique provides additional data compared to either technique alone, offering superior understanding of the dynamics of the epileptic activity and its interaction with functional cortical areas.