World Neurosurg
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Practicing neurosurgery in 2021 requires a detailed knowledge of the vocabulary and mechanisms for coding and reimbursement, which should include general knowledge at the global level and fluency at the provider level. It is specifically of interest for the neurosurgeon to understand conceptually the nuances of hospital reimbursement. That knowledge is especially germane as more neurosurgeons become hospital employees. ⋯ We illustrate the formula to generate physician reimbursement through the current relative value unit structure. We also seek to explain hospital-level reimbursement through the diagnosis-related group structure. Finally, we expand about different and ancillary income streams available to neurosurgeons and provide a realistic assessment including the opportunities and challenges of those entities.
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Neuroblastoma is a primitive small-round-blue-cell tumor predominately found in pediatric patients. Few cases of neuroblastoma involving the adult spine have been reported. ⋯ Adjuvant differentiating therapy was employed, and curative radiation therapy was used to address the first instance of locoregional recurrence. The patient remains alive with stable disease more than 2 years after his initial diagnosis.
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The current study seeks to examine the association between chronic opioid use and postoperative outcomes for patients undergoing anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) and posterior lumbar fusion (PLF). ⋯ Our analysis using a national administrative database showed that opioid dependence may be associated with worse economic outcomes for patients undergoing ACDF and PLF.
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The incorporation of perspective into art and science revolutionized the study of the brain. Beginning in about 1504, Leonardo da Vinci began to model the ventricles of the brain in three dimensions. A few years later, Andreus Vesalius illustrated radically novel brain dissections. ⋯ We analyzed 414 of 508 works authored by Rhoton; these studies were analyzed according to subjects discussed, including anatomic region, surgical approaches, subjects covered, anatomic methods used, forms of multimedia, and subspecialty. Rhoton taught detailed neuroanatomy from a surgical perspective using meticulous techniques that evolved as the technical demands of neurosurgery advanced, inspiring students and contemporaries. His work aligns him with renowned figures in neuroanatomy, arguably establishing him historically as the most influential anatomist of the neurosurgical era.
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Hypertrophy of the ligamentum flavum (LF) contributes to the development of spinal stenosis. Smad proteins can mediate the fibrogenesis activity through the transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) pathway, but which Smad protein plays a more important role in the hypertrophy process of LF is unclear. ⋯ Our findings suggest that Smad2 plays a potential role in the pathologic development of hypertrophy of LF. We also found that Smad2 knockdown by Smad-siRNA can influence the TGF-β1 signaling pathway through decreasing expression of TGF-β1, tumor necrosis factor α, and nuclear factor κb.