World Neurosurg
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We aimed to quantify the need for additional surgery in patients with chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) primarily treated with dexamethasone and to identify patient characteristics associated with additional surgery. ⋯ More than one-third of patients with CSDH primarily treated with dexamethasone received additional surgery. These patients were more severely affected amongst others with larger hematomas.
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Case Reports
Resection of a Thoracic Intramedullary Breast Metastasis Through the Dorsal Root Entry Zone: 2-D Operative Video.
Intramedullary spinal cord metastases (ISCMs) are rare, representing 8.5% of central nervous system metastases and 5% of intramedullary lesions.1 With the advent of immunotherapy leading to longer-term survival for cancer patients, intramedullary metastases are on the rise.2 A 43-year-old female presented with acute right leg weakness and sensory loss (Video 1). Magnetic resonance imaging revealed an avidly enhancing mass in the spinal cord at T6 with associated edema. Surgical resection was performed for tumor debulking to stabilize and ideally improve neurologic function, as well as for tissue acquisition for molecular profiling and targeted therapy. ⋯ We strongly recommend use of D-wave monitoring in such cases as it clearly impacted our ability to maximize the resection. This is the first video where the DREZ approach is emphasized along with utilization of D-wave monitoring. The patient consented to the surgical procedure and the use of intraoperative video for education purposes.
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To compare outcomes of three-dimensional-printed porous titanium (Ti) versus polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cage implantation for stand-alone lateral lumbar interbody fusion (SA-LLIF) in treatment of symptomatic adjacent segment degeneration. ⋯ In patients undergoing stand-alone lateral lumbar interbody fusion to treat adjacent segment degeneration, Ti cages had a significantly lower overall subsidence rate compared with PEEK cages. Furthermore, Ti cages resulted in fewer recommendations for revision surgery. Whether greater pain reduction in the Ti group is associated with earlier or higher fusion rates needs to be further elucidated.
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Kyphoplasty (KP) is a surgery used to reduce pain and increase stability by injecting medical bone cement into broken vertebrae. The purpose of this study was to determine the ideal amount of cement and injection site by analyzing forces with the finite element method. ⋯ With increasing amount of bone cement, stress on the upper and lower end plates of the cemented segment increased significantly. Thus, increasing cement amount to be more than 11.5 cc has a potential risk of adjacent fracture. Centrally injected bone cement can lower the risk of adjacent fracture after percutaneous KP.
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Patients with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS), a heritable connective tissue disorder, present frequently with symptoms of tethered cord syndrome (TCS) but without a low-lying conus. Currently, surgical treatment of such cases is controversial. Because connective tissue disorder affects fibrous structures, we hypothesized that a diseased filum terminale (FT) might cause TCS in hEDS, justifying surgical transection for treatment. ⋯ Both morphologic findings and biomechanical tests indicate limited elastic properties of the FT in hEDS, which is no more able to dampen but still transmitting spine movement-related stretch forces. That mechanism exposes the conus medullaris to unphysiologic stretch forces, causing TCS, especially when considering the hypermobile spine in hEDS. This notion is supported by the observed clinical improvement following FT resection in hEDS-TCS cases without a low-lying conus.