bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Surgery for large vestibular schwannomas: how patients and surgeons perceive quality of life
Authors: Nicoucar Keyvan , Momjian Shahan , Vader John-Paul , de Tribolet Nicolas 
Published: January 2008

Object
The aim of this study was to assess the consequences of total removal of a large vestibular schwannoma on the patient’s symptoms and quality of life (QOL).

Methods
A questionnaire regarding preoperative and postoperative symptoms with measures of both daily and global QOL and a modified 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) QOL instrument were sent to 103 patients who had undergone surgery via a retrosigmoid approach for total removal of a Grade III or IV vestibular schwannoma. In addition, 48 patients underwent follow-up clinical examinations to assess their conditions.
Seventy-two of the 103 patients completed and returned the questionnaire. Forty-six (64%) of the schwannomas were Grade IV and 26 (36%) were Grade III. The patients’ pre- and postoperative symptoms were similar to those reported in other studies. The patients’ perceptions of facial movement were likely to be worse than the clinicians’ estimation based on the House–Brackmann classification. All scores in the QOL categories were significantly reduced when compared with normative data. Patients with large vestibular schwannomas had lower scores in all SF-36 categories except pain compared with data from other studies. Psychological problems were the preponderant symptoms, and their presence was the most powerful predictive variable for global and daily QOL.

Conclusions
Surgery for a large vestibular schwannoma has a significant impact on the patient’s QOL. To improve QOL postoperatively, the patient should be prepared and well informed of the consequences of such a surgery on QOL. Clinicians must be aware that early involvement of a clinical psychologist may be very helpful.
Gamma Knife surgery for metastatic brainstem tumors
Authors: Yen Chun Po , Sheehan Jason , Patterson Greg , Steiner Ladislau 
Published: January 2008

Object
The authors review imaging and clinical outcomes in patients with metastatic brainstem tumors treated using Gamma Knife surgery (GKS).

Methods
Between March 1989 and March 2005, 53 patients (24 men and 29 women) with metastatic brainstem lesions underwent GKS. The metastatic deposits were located in the midbrain in eight patients, the pons in 42, and the medulla oblongata in three. Lung cancer was the most common primary malignancy, followed by breast cancer, melanoma, and renal cell carcinoma. The mean volume of the metastatic deposits at the time of treatment was 2.8 cm3 (range 0.05–21 cm3). The prescription doses varied from 9 to 25 Gy (mean 17.6 Gy).
Imaging follow-up studies were not completed in 16 patients, because of the short-term survival in 11 and patient refusal in five. Of the remaining 37 patients, who underwent an imaging follow-up evaluation at a mean of 9.8 months (range 1–25 months), the tumors disappeared in seven, shrank in 22, remained unchanged in three, and grew in five. All but one of 18 patients with asymptomatic brainstem deposits remained free of symptoms. In 35 patients with symptomatic brainstem deposits, neurological symptoms improved in 21, remained stable in 11, and worsened in three. At the time of this study, 10 patients were alive, and their survival ranged from 3 to 52 months after treatment. Thirty-four patients died of extracranial disease, three of the progressing metastatic brainstem lesion, and six of additional progressing intracranial deposits in other parts of the brain. The overall median survival period was 11 months after GKS. In terms of survival, the absence of active extracranial disease was the only favorable prognostic factor. Neither previous whole-brain radiation therapy nor a single brainstem metastasis was statistically related to the duration of survival.

Conclusions
Compared with allowing a metastatic brainstem lesion to take its natural course, GKS prolongs survival. The risks associated with such treatment are low. The severity of systemic diseases largely determines the prognosis of metastases to the brainstem.
Effects of balloon angioplasty on perfusion- and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging results and outcome in patients with cerebral vasospasm
Authors: Beck Jürgen , Raabe Andreas , Lanfermann Heiner , Berkefeld Joachim , De Rochemont Richard Du Mesnil , Zanella Friedhelm , Seifert Volker , Weidauer Stefan 
Published: January 2008

Object
The aim of this study was to analyze the effects and outcome of transluminal balloon angioplasty (TBA) on brain tissue perfusion by using combined perfusion- and diffusion-weighted (PW/DW) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in patients with cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Methods
Ten consecutive patients with cerebral vasospasm treated using TBA were included in this prospective study. Hemodynamically relevant vasospasm was diagnosed using a standardized PW/DW MR imaging protocol. Digital subtraction angiography was used to confirm vasospasm, and TBA was performed to dilate vasospastic arteries. The PW/DW imaging protocol was repeated after TBA. The evaluation of the passage of contrast medium after standardized application using the bolus tracking method allowed for the calculation of the time to peak (TTP) before and after TBA.
Tissue at risk was defined based on perfusion delays in individual vessel territories compared with those in reference territories. In cases with proximal focal vasospasm, TBA could dilate spastic arteries. Follow-up PW/DW MR imaging showed the disappearance of, or a decrease in, the mismatch. A TBA-induced reduction in the perfusion delay of 6.2 ± 1 seconds (mean ± standard error of the mean) to 1.5 ± 0.45 seconds resulted in the complete prevention of infarction; a reduction in the delay of 6.2 ± 2.7 to 4.1 ± 1.9 seconds resulted in the preservation of those brain tissue parts having only small infarcts in the vessel territories. Without TBA, however, the perfusion delay remained or even increased (11.1 ± 3.7 seconds), and the complete infarction of a territory occurred.

Conclusions
Angioplasty of vasospastic arteries leads to hemodynamic effects that can be quantified using PW/DW MR imaging. In cases of a severe PW/DW imaging mismatch successful TBA improved tissue perfusion and prevented cerebral infarction. The clinical significance of PW/DW MR imaging and the concept of tissue at risk is shown by cerebral infarction in vessels not accessible by TBA.
Primary stent therapy for symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis: 1-year follow-up angiographic and midterm clinical outcomes
Authors: Lee Chang-Young , Yim Man-Bin 
Published: January 2008

Object
The aim of this study was to report 1-year angiographic follow-up results and midterm clinical outcomes in patients with symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic lesions treated with stent placement.

Methods
Ten patients with ischemic symptoms referable to stenotic intracranial atherosclerotic arteries, with greater than 60% stenosis, underwent elective surgery in which a primary stent was placed. All patients underwent pretreatment (≥ 1 week) combination oral antiplatelet (clopidogrel and aspirin) therapy and long-term (6-month) combination oral antiplatelet (clopidogrel and aspirin) therapy after stents were placed. The procedure involved selecting stents of the same size as the diameter of the target vessel and slowly inflating the balloon to its nominal pressure. One-year angiography and midterm clinical follow-up data were obtained.
The stents were successfully placed in all patients without any perioperative complication. The mean preoperative stenosis rate of 81% decreased to 4% after the stent was placed. Nine patients who underwent follow-up angiography (one patient refused) at a mean of 12.3 months (range 10–19 months) had no changes in luminal diameter compared with the immediate postoperative luminal diameter. Luminal narrowing increased, from 15 to 38%, in one case in which there was comparatively greater residual stenosis (15%). No patient suffered new ischemic symptoms during a mean clinical follow-up period of 21 months (range 12–36 months).

Conclusions
Elective stent surgery can provide good angiographic and clinical midterm outcomes in patients with symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis, and the procedure is associated with a high degree of technical success. Reassessment of these promising results is needed in a larger population and in a randomized prospective comparison study.
Endoscopic resection of solid intraventricular brain tumors
Authors: Souweidane Mark M. , Luther Neal 
Published: January 2008

Object
Endoscopic removal of intraventricular brain tumors is well established for cystic tumors such as colloid cysts. Aspiration followed by removal or ablation of the membranous wall is possible given the constituent features of these tumors. It is generally expected that endoscopic removal of solid brain tumors from the intraventricular compartment would impose additional technical demands. In this paper, the feasibility and safety of endoscopic removal of solid intraventricular brain tumors is evaluated.

Methods
Eighty-one patients who underwent endoscopic management of an intraventricular brain tumor were identified from a prospective database. Of these patients, seven underwent attempted endoscopic surgical removal of a solid primary brain tumor. Patient selection, surgical technique, procedure-related morbidity, and extent of removal were reviewed.
Five patients underwent complete resection of a solid intraventricular brain tumor, a treatment option that was based on intraoperative assessment and confirmed by postoperative imaging. No patient experienced any procedure-related morbidity. Of the individuals in whom a total endoscopic resection was successful, there has been no symptomatic or radiological evidence of recurrence (mean follow up 20 months). Maximum tumor diameter ranged from 0.5 to 1.8 cm for patients who underwent complete resection, whereas maximum tumor diameter measured 2.4 and 2.5 cm in the two patients in whom a subtotal excision was performed.

Conclusions
In select patients, complete endoscopic removal of solid intraventricular brain tumors is possible and safe. Factors that influence the ability of a surgeon to perform a complete endoscopic resection include tumor size, composition, and vascularity. The procedure requires careful patient selection, the use of refined endoscopic instrumentation, and a disciplined surgical technique.
Involvement of phospholipase C in endothelin 1–induced stimulation of Ca++ channels and basilar artery contraction in rabbits
Authors: Kawanabe Yoshifumi , Masaki Tomoh , Hashimoto Nobuo 
Published: January 2008

Object
Endothelin 1 (ET-1) is a major cause of cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and extracellular Ca++ influx plays an essential role in ET-1–induced vasospasm. The authors recently demonstrated that ET-1 activates two types of Ca++-permeable nonselective cation channels (designated NSCC-1 and NSCC-2) and a store-operated Ca++ channel (SOCC) in vascular smooth-muscle cells located in the basilar arteries (BAs) of rabbits. In the present study, they investigate the effects of phospholipase C (PLC) on ET-1–induced activation of these Ca++ channels and BA contraction by using the PLC inhibitor U73122.

Methods
To determine which Ca++ channels are activated via a PLC-dependent pathway, these investigators monitored the intracellular free Ca++ concentration ([Ca++]i). The role of PLC in ET-1–induced vascular contraction was examined by performing a tension study of rabbit BA rings.
The U73122 inhibited the ET-1–induced transient increase in [Ca++]i, which resulted from mobilization of Ca++; from the intracellular store. Phospholipase C also inhibited ET-1–induced extracellular Ca++ influx through the SOCC and NSCC-2, but not through the NSCC-1. The U73122 inhibited the ET-1–induced contraction of the rabbit BA rings, which depended on extracellular Ca++ influx through the SOCC and NSCC-2.

Conclusions
These results indicate the following. 1) The SOCC and NSCC-2 are stimulated by ET-1 via a PLC-dependent cascade whereas NSCC-1 is stimulated via a PLC-independent cascade. 2) The PLC is involved in the ET-1–induced contraction of rabbit BA rings, which depends on extracellular Ca++ influx through the SOCC and NSCC-2.
Optic radiations: a microsurgical anatomical study
Authors: Peltier Johann , Travers Nadine , Destrieux Christophe , Velut Stéphane 
Published: January 2008

Object
In this study, the authors used a fiber-dissection technique to describe the optic radiation. They focused on the morphological characteristics (length and breadth) of this structure, its course, and its relationships with neighboring fasciculi and the lateral ventricle.

Methods
The authors dissected 10 previously frozen, formalin-fixed human brains with the aid of an operating microscope by following the fiber dissection technique described by Klingler in 1960. Lateral, inferior, and medial approaches were made. The optic radiation, also known as the Gratiolet radiation, extended from the lateral geniculate body to the calcarine fissure. The average distance from the tip of the anterior Meyer loop to the calcarine sulcus was 105 mm (range 95–114 mm). The breadth of the optic radiations, one on each side of the brain, averaged 17 mm at the level of the inferior horn (range 15–18 mm). This tract could be divided into three main segments: the anterior or Meyer loop, the body, and the end of the optic radiation. Adjacent anatomical structures included: laterally, the inferior longitudinal fasciculi; medially, the tapetum of the corpus callosum; and the ependyma of the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle.

Conclusions
Various practical surgical approaches are discussed. The knowledge gained by studying this particular anatomy will help prevent injury to the optic radiations during neurosurgery.
Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis causing Serratia marcescens and Proteus mirabilis ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection
Authors: Tumialán Luis M. , Lin Franklin , Gupta Sanjay K. 
Published: January 2008

✓The authors report their experience treating a polymicrobial ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt infection in a developmentally delayed 21-year-old woman. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cultures grew Serratia marcescens and Proteus mirabilis. On admission and throughout her hospitalization, results of physical examination of her abdomen were normal, and radiographic studies showed no evidence of bowel perforation or pseudocyst formation. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the abdomen revealed a small fluid collection. After a course of intravenous gentamicin and imipenem with cilastatin in conjunction with intrathecal gentamicin, the infection was resolved and the VP shunt was reimplanted.
Although VP shunt infections are not uncommon, S. marcescens as a causative agent is exceedingly rare and potentially devastating. Only two previous cases of S. marcescens shunt infection have been reported in the literature. Authors reporting on S. marcescens infections in the central nervous system (CNS) have observed significant morbidity and death. Although more common, the presence of P. mirabilis in the CSF is still rare and highly suggestive of bowel perforation, which was absent in this patient. Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis was the likely source from which these bacteria gained entrance into the VP shunt system, eventually causing ventriculitis in this patient.
The authors conclude that in light of the high morbidity associated with S. marcescens infection of the CNS, intrathecal administration of gentamicin should be strongly considered as part of first-line therapy for S. marcescens infections in VP shunts.
Skull base abnormalities in osteogenesis imperfecta: a cephalometric evaluation of 54 patients and 108 control volunteers
Authors: Kovero Outi , Pynnönen Seppo , Kuurila-Svahn Kaija , Kaitila Ilkka , Waltimo-Sirén Janna 
Published: January 2008

Object
Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), which usually results from mutations in type I collagen genes, causes bone fragility and deformities. The head is often abnormally shaped, and changes in skull base anatomy in the form of basilar impression and basilar invagination have been reported. The authors analyzed the skull base anatomy on standardized lateral cephalograms from 54 patients with OI (Types I, III, and IV) and 108 control volunteers. They were surprised to find that the previously used diagnostic measures for basilar abnormality in patients with OI were exceeded in 6.5 to 7.4% of the controls, and hence needed to be reevaluated.

Methods
The authors calculated the distance from the odontoid process to four reference lines, including a novel one, in the controls. The normal mean distances were exceeded by more than two standard deviations (SDs) in 28.3 to 35.2%, and by more than three SDs in 13.2 to 16.6% of the patients with OI. The latter figures reliably reflect the prevalence of basilar impression. As a sign of basilar invagination the odontoid process protruded into the foramen magnum or reached the foramen magnum level in 22.2% of the patients with OI, whereas none of the controls showed this feature. Platybasia (an anterior cranial base angle > 146°) was present in 11.1% of the patients but in none of the controls.

Conclusions
Platybasia, basilar impression, and basilar invagination were often coexpressed, but each was also present as an isolated abnormality. These three abnormalities and wormian bones were predominantly found in OI Types III and IV as well as in patients exhibiting dentinal abnormality.
Balloon-assisted coil embolization of intracranial aneurysms: incidence, complications, and angiography results
Authors: Sluzewski Menno , Van Rooij Willem Jan , Beute Guus N. , Nijssen Peter C. 
Published: January 2008

Object
The aim of this study was to assess the incidence, indications, complications, and angiography results associated with balloon-assisted coil embolization (BACE) of intracranial aneurysms and to compare these factors with those for conventional coil embolization (CE).

Methods
Between 1995 and 2005, 827 intracranial aneurysms in 757 consecutive patients were packed with coils. Balloon-assisted coil embolization was used in 8.6% (71 of 827) of the coil insertion procedures and was more frequently used in large aneurysms, unruptured lesions, and those located on the vertebrobasilar system and carotid artery. Procedure-related complications leading to death or dependency were significantly higher in BACEs (14.1%) compared with those in CEs (3%). Packing densities and the results of 6-month follow-up angiography studies did not differ significantly between the two types of treatments. There was a strong trend for a higher retreatment rate in the aneurysms treated with BACE.

Conclusions
Balloon-assisted coil embolization of intracranial aneurysms is associated with a high complication rate and should only be used if conventional CE of these lesions is impossible or has failed and if anticipated surgical risks are too high. The BACE procedure does not improve the occlusion rates of the aneurysms on follow-up evaluation.
Blood blister–like aneurysms at nonbranching sites of the internal carotid artery
Authors: Sim Sook Young , Shin Yong Sam , Cho Kyung Gi , Kim Sun Yong , Kim Se Hyuk , Ahn Young Hwan , Yoon Soo Han , Cho Ki Hong 
Published: January 2008

Object
The clinical features of blood blister–like aneurysms (BBAs) that arise at nonbranching sites of the internal carotid artery (ICA) differ from those of saccular aneurysms. In this study, the authors attempt to describe optimal treatments for BBAs, which have yet to be clearly established.

Methods
Ten of 483 patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage who had been seen at the authors’ institution between March 2001 and June 2005 had intraoperatively confirmed BBAs at nonbranching sites of the ICA. All ten patients were women between the ages of 37 and 64 years (mean age 49.3 years); five had a history of hypertension. The BBAs were localized to the right side of the ICA in seven cases. All patients were successfully treated; clipping was undertaken in six, clipping combined with wrapping in three, and trapping in one. These methods were used in conjunction with various other surgical techniques such as brain relaxation by draining cerebrospinal fluid, anterior clinoidectomy, exposing the cervical ICA, gentle subpial dissection (for aneurysms that adhered to the frontal lobe), complete trapping of the ICA before clipping, and protecting the brain. Clip slippage occurred at the end of dural closing in two cases; the aneurysm was completely obliterated using multiple clips combined with ICA stenosis in one of these cases and ICA trapping with good collateral flow in the other. An excellent clinical outcome was achieved in eight patients, whereas two patients were disabled from massive vasospasm. The authors retrospectively reviewed radiological and surgical data in all cases to determine which treatment methods produced a favorable outcome.

Conclusions
Blood blister–like aneurysms located at nonbranching sites of the ICA are difficult to treat. Preoperative awareness and careful consideration of these lesions during surgery can prevent poor clinical outcomes.
Three-dimensional rotational angiography guidance for aneurysm surgery
Authors: Raabe Andreas , Beck Jürgen , Rohde Stefan , Berkefeld Joachim , Seifert Volker 
Published: January 2008

Object
The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of integrating three-dimensional rotational angiography (3D-RA) data into a surgical navigation system and to assess its accuracy and potential clinical benefit.

Methods
The study cohort consisted of 16 patients with 16 intracranial aneurysms who had been scheduled for routine or emergency surgery. Rotational angiography data were exported using a virtual reality modeling language file format and imported into the BrainLAB VectorVision2 image-guided surgery equipment. During 3D-RA the position of the head was measured using a special headframe. The authors also determined the accuracy of 3D-RA image guidance and the clinical benefit as judged by the surgeon, including, for example, early identification of branching vessels and the aneurysm.
There was good correspondence between the 3D-RA–based navigation data and the intraoperative vascular anatomy in all cases, with a maximum error of 9° of angulation and 9° of rotation. In eight cases, the surgeon determined that the 3D-RA image guidance facilitated the surgical procedure by predicting the location of the aneurysm or the origin of a branching artery that had been covered by brain tissue and blood clots.

Conclusions
The integration of 3D-RA into surgical navigation systems is feasible, but it currently requires a new perspective-registration technique. The intraoperative 3D view provides useful information about the vascular anatomy and may improve the quality of aneurysm surgery in selected cases.