World Neurosurg
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Case Reports
Vagal Nerve Stimulator Malfunction with Change in Neck Position: Case Report and Literature Review.
Vagal nerve stimulation is a safe and well-tolerated treatment for drug-resistant epilepsy. Complications and failure of the device can result from lead fracture, device malfunction, disconnection, or battery displacement and can result in a variety of symptoms. We present an interesting case of stimulator malfunction with increased impedance change seen only with a change in head position. ⋯ VNs malfunction can present in atypical ways. Positional maneuvers may help with its timely diagnosis.
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We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to provide a longitudinal description of cortical plasticity caused by electroacupuncture (EA) of sciatic nerve transection and direct anastomosis in rats. ⋯ The alterations in the brain brought about by the long-term therapeutic effect of EA could be described as a synchronized activation pattern in the somatosensory and pain-related areas and a fluctuating pattern in the limbic/paralimbic system.
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The 2013 Physician Payments Sunshine Act mandates that all U.S. drug and device manufacturers disclose payments to physicians. All payments are made available annually in the Open Payments Database (OPD). Our aim was to determine prevalence, magnitude, and nature of these payments to physicians performing neurologic surgery in 2015 and to discuss the role that financial conflicts of interest play in neurosurgery. ⋯ The neurological surgery specialty receives substantial annual payments from industry in the United States. The overall value is driven by a small number of payments of high monetary value. The OPD provides a unique opportunity for increased transparency in industry-physician relationships facilitating disclosure of financial conflicts of interest.
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Prognosis of patients with melanoma brain metastasis is poor despite various chemotherapeutic agents. Researchers focus on finding effective treatment with a low risk of toxicity. Thymoquinone (TQ) has been found to be effective on different types of cancer. However, no data exist regarding the effect of TQ in intracerebral melanoma. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of TQ in B16-F10 melanoma cell in vitro and intracerebral melanoma in vivo. ⋯ Our findings suggest that TQ would be an effective treatment in intracerebral metastatic lesions. This warrants further investigation.
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Research has shown that ischemic preconditioning reduced the severity of ischemia-reperfusion injury in brain in rats, we have a hypothesis that repeated brief ischemia has positive effects on peripheral nerve damage. This study was conducted to investigate the potential protective effects of repeated brief ischemia on peripheral nerve regeneration using a rat model of experimental sciatic nerve transection injury. ⋯ This study exhibits the positive effects of repeated brief ischemia in sciatic nerve transection injury, possibly in part because it can improve VEGF and the physiologic state of Schwann cells in the ischemic environment and then accelerate the ability of neurite outgrow.