World Neurosurg
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Medical students are increasingly seeking out research opportunities to build their skills and network with future colleagues. Medical student-led conferences are an excellent endeavor to achieve this goal. ⋯ Regional in-person conferences are an excellent way to foster interest in neurosurgery and neuroscience research, network with like-minded peers, and prepare students for presentations at national meetings.
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Preoperative opioid use has been well-studied in elective spinal surgery and correlated with numerous postoperative complications including increases in immediate postoperative opioid demand (POD), continued opioid use postoperatively, prolonged length of stay (LOS), readmissions, and disability. There is a paucity of data available on the use of preoperative opioids in surgery for spine trauma, possibly because there are minimal options for opioid reduction prior to emergent spinal surgery. Nevertheless, patients with traumatic spinal injuries are at a high risk for adverse postoperative outcomes. This study investigated the effects of preoperative opioid use on POD and LOS in spine trauma patients. ⋯ Preoperative opioid users had increased POD compared to non-opioid users and patients abusing other substances, but there was no difference in LOS. We theorize the lack of difference in LOS may be due to the enhanced perioperative recovery protocol used, which has been demonstrated to reduce LOS.
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This study aimed to pinpoint independent predictors influencing overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) in elderly patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) brain metastasis (BM), and to create and validate nomograms for OS and CSS prediction. ⋯ Prognostic nomograms for elderly patients with SCLC BM have been developed, demonstrating good performance in terms of accuracy, reliability, and practicality.
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Continuous bedside monitoring of brain tissue oxygen levels is a crucial component in the management of comatose patients suffering from acute brain injury on neurointensive care units. Ensuring sufficient brain oxygenation is recognized as an essential objective within neurocritical care, aimed at safeguarding patients from secondary ischemia. Hypoperfusion in occipital and the posterior watershed regions often remains undetected, as the placement of probes in these areas is challenging. A major concern is that patients would have to lie on the traditionally used implanted bolts due to the occipital entry point of the probes. Therefore, we present a novel technique compatible with magnetic resonance imaging that enables bedside placement of brain tissue oxygen probes without the use of a bolt in these areas. ⋯ This technical note describes the feasibility of a novel, simple, and straightforward bedside technique for boltless implantation of Licox brain tissue oxygen probes leading to rigid fixation and compatibility with magnetic resonance imaging.
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To investigate the association between resilience and outcomes of pain and neck-related disability after single- and double-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). ⋯ Patients demonstrated improvement in pain and neck-related disability after single- and double-level ACDF, regardless of resilience score. Patients with greater resilience may be expected to demonstrate more improvement in pain after ACDF.