World Neurosurg
-
Vision is important for patients with hearing loss caused by neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2). Tumors adjacent to the anterior visual pathway can potentially impair the vision. Only a few case reports and small-series studies have been reported. ⋯ Tumors adjacent to the anterior visual pathway, although uncommon in patients with NF2, can cause progressive visual loss. Early surgical intervention seems to be the primary treatment strategy, except for in patients' optic nerve sheath meningiomas. If patients adopt a wait and see policy, regular visual examination seems to be mandatory.
-
The basic necessities for surgical procedures are illumination, exposure, and magnification. These have undergone transformation in par with technology. One of the recent developments is the compact magnifying exoscope system. In this report, we describe the application of this system for surgical operations and discuss its advantages and pitfalls. ⋯ The magnifying exoscope is an effective and nonbulky tool for surgical procedures. In visualization around the corners, the exoscope has better potential than a microscope. With technical and technologic modifications, the exoscope might become the next generation in illumination, visualization, exposure, and magnification for high-precision surgical procedures.
-
Although short-term clinical outcomes after basilar artery stent placement have been reported previously, effectiveness of intracranial stenting for vertebrobasilar artery occlusion in the acute phase of ischemic stroke is unclear. ⋯ Stent angioplasty may be a reasonably good treatment option for patients with technically favorable lesions, especially in vertebrobasilar atherosclerotic occlusion with medically or PTA only refractory symptoms. Despite a significant complication rate, most of our patients experienced good to excellent clinical outcomes and were free of vertebrobasilar ischemia at late midterm follow-up.
-
The primary objective of this study is to examine the effects smoking status on rhBMP-2 supplementation in spinal fusion constructs. ⋯ While rhBMP-2 supplements arthrodesis of instrumented lumbar fusion constructs, smoking status ascertains the strongest predictor of reoperation for pseudarthrosis, instrumentation failure, and adjacent segment.
-
A Rathke cleft cyst (RCC) with nonhemorrhagic rupture mimicking pituitary apoplexy has been reported rarely. ⋯ We conclude that nonhemorrhagic RCC rupture and subsequent leakage of the contents into subarachnoid space were the underlying pathogenesis in the present case of RCC resembling apoplexy.