Neurosurg Focus
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OBJECTIVE Different surgical approaches have been described for treatment of spondylolisthesis, including in situ fusions, reductions of various degrees, and inclusion of healthy adjacent segments into the fusion construct. To the authors' knowledge, there are only sparse reports describing consistent complete reduction and monosegmental transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion for spondylolisthesis using a minimally invasive technique. The authors assess the efficacy of this technique in the reduction of local deformity and correction of overall sagittal profile in single-level spondylolisthesis. ⋯ No major perioperative complications were encountered. CONCLUSIONS Minimally invasive monosegmental TLIF for spondylolisthesis reduction using this rocking technique is effective in the treatment of various grades of spondylolisthesis. Consistent complete reduction of the slippage as well as excellent correction of overall sagittal profile can be achieved, and the need for including healthy adjacent segments in the fusion construct can be avoided.
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OBJECTIVE Spinal tumors account for 2%-4% of all tumors of the central nervous system and can be intramedullary, intradural extramedullary, or extradural. In the past, wide approaches were used to obtain safe access to these tumors, as complete resection is the goal in treating most tumor entities. To reduce surgical complications due to large skin incisions and destabilizing laminectomies, minimally invasive approaches were established. ⋯ There were significantly more surgery-associated complications in the large exposure group than in the patients treated with the mini-open approach (19.1% vs 9.6%, p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Intradural extramedullary and in selected cases intramedullary pathologies may safely be resected using a mini-open interlaminar approach. Avoiding laminectomy, laminotomy, and even hemilaminectomy preserves spinal stability and significantly reduces comorbidities, while still allowing for complete resection of these tumors.
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A successful nerve transfer surgery can provide a wealth of benefits to a patient with cervical spinal cord injury. The process of surgical decision making ideally uses all pertinent information to produce the best functional outcome. ⋯ If available preoperatively, knowledge gained from such an evaluation could significantly alter the reconstructive surgical plan and avoid poor results. The authors describe their institution's approach to the assessment of patients with cervical spinal cord injury who are being considered for nerve transfer surgery in both the acute and chronic setting and broadly review the neurophysiological techniques used.
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Case Reports
Surgical treatment of a complex Grade III Spetzler-Martin posterior temporal arteriovenous malformation.
Grade III Spetzler-Martin arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are a distinct subgroup of brain AVMs. Their variety in terms of location, type of venous drainage, and size makes them the most heterogenous group in the AVM classification. The surgical risk of treatment is also variable depending on the specifics of a given Grade III AVM. ⋯ The detail of the AVM resection is described in the video clip. A total resection was achieved, and the patient's neurological examination was intact after the procedure. The video can be found here: https://youtu.be/fj5Cxw3kpXQ .
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Case Reports
Contralateral transcallosal resection of a ventricular body arteriovenous malformation: 3D operative video.
A 46-year-old male presented with an incidentally discovered left ventricular body arteriovenous malformation (AVM). It measured 2 cm in diameter and had drainage via an atrial vein into the internal cerebral vein (Spetzler-Martin Grade III, Supplementary Grade 4). Preoperative embolization of the posterior medial choroidal artery reduced nidus size by 50%. ⋯ This case demonstrates strategic circumferential disconnection of feeding arteries (FAs) to the nidus, the use of aneurysm clips to control large FAs, and the use of dynamic retraction and importance of a generous callosotomy. Postoperatively, he was neurologically intact, and angiogram confirmed complete resection. The video can be found here: https://youtu.be/j0778LfS3MI .