World Neurosurg
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Visual loss can be encountered in the immediate, early, or even delayed postoperative period after resection of skull base meningiomas involving the optic apparatus. Various mechanisms for visual loss can include mechanical injury, vascular insult, optic nerve and chiasm edema, and vasospasm of the blood supply to the visual apparatus. ⋯ To our knowledge, this is the first report of successful reversal of postoperative unilateral visual loss related to vasospasm after resection of a skull base sphenoclinoidocavernous meningioma. This may be a useful strategy to diagnose and treat possible vasospasm-induced visual loss after resection of skull base meningiomas involving the optic apparatus.
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Case Reports
Globus pallidus internus deep brain stimulation for traumatic hemidystonia following penetrating head injury.
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been a major advance in the treatment of dystonias. Outcomes are, however, less predictable for secondary dystonias, predominantly due to progression of disease or specific brain lesions. There are few cases reported of globus pallidus internus (GPi)-DBS for posttraumatic dystonia. We describe the successful use of unilateral GPi-DBS in a patient with hemidystonia following penetrating head injury. To our knowledge, this is the first description of the use of DBS following penetrating head injury. ⋯ Selected patients with posttraumatic hemidystonia, including following penetrating head injury, represent one group of secondary dystonias that might benefit from DBS surgery.
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Cerebellar stroke causes major morbidity in the aging population. Guidelines from the American Stroke Association recommend emergent decompression in patients who have brainstem compression, hydrocephalus, or clinical deterioration. The objective of this study was to determine 30-day and 1-year mortality rates in patients >60 years old undergoing emergent posterior fossa decompression. ⋯ Increasing age and smaller craniectomy size were significantly associated with mortality in patients undergoing emergent posterior fossa decompression. Among patients ≥80 years old, one-quarter were dead within 1 month of the operation, and more than two-thirds were dead within 1 year.
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The anterior lumbar spine approach has gained in popularity in recent years, but the associated access-related complications for obese patients have not been clearly established. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between obesity or overweight and the safety of the anterior lumbar spine approach. ⋯ Because BMI does not seem to increase the overall risk of complications, the anterior lumbar spine approach should be considered in obese or overweight patients, as in nonoverweight patients.
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Recent decades have seen a rapid expansion of involvement of medical students in biomedical research during medical school training. Research within medical school has been shown to influence medical students with regard to medical knowledge, career development, and residency specialty choice. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of neurosurgery medical student research grants on neurosurgery residency choice and provide an insight on the demographics of grant awardees. ⋯ Neurosurgery grants for medical students are highly successful in producing future neurosurgeons with >50% of grant recipients matched into neurosurgery. Women are underrepresented in neurosurgery grants and neurosurgery residency programs. This situation can be improved by providing insight about the field early in medical school, perhaps through increased use of neurosurgery medical student grants.