Spinal Metastasis

Neurosurgery ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
pp. 726-746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Perry Black

Abstract An overview of the current status of various aspects of spinal metastasis, including pathology, diagnosis, and management, is presented. The cell type of the tumor, particularly with reference to its radiosensitivity, seems to be positively correlated with treatment outcome, regardless of the treatment modality. Because pretreatment neurological status also seems to influence prognosis, early identification of spinal involvement in patients at risk is important; therefore, a high index of suspicion in patients known to have cancer is necessary. The most useful warning of impending spinal cord or nerve root compression is spinal or radicular pain, which usually precedes neurological deficit by days to years. An aggressive diagnostic evaluation of pain symptoms is therefore warranted; this should include plain spine films and, in questionable cases, radioisotope bone scan. Myelography should also be considered in any cancer patient with persistent spinal or radicular pain, even in the absence of neurological deficit and certainly if there is any neurological impairment. Therapeutically, radiation and surgery continue as the mainstays of management, whereas steroids and chemotherapy serve as adjuvants. The guidelines for management recommended in this paper are to be viewed as tentative because the ideal treatment for spinal metastasis has not been established. The proposed guidelines are based on an analysis of retrospective studies that suggest that radiotherapy should be the primary mode of treatment and that surgery should be reserved for situations in which radiotherapy fails or where there is bony compression or spinal instability. Cases are presented to illustrate the application of these guidelines.

2020 ◽  
pp. 41-45
Author(s):  
G. R. Kuchava ◽  
E. V. Eliseev ◽  
B. V. Silaev ◽  
D. A. Doroshenko ◽  
Yu. N. Fedulaev

The aim of the study was to assess the course and outcome of cerebral infarction, depending on the age factor and duration of stay in the neuroblock. Materials and methods: a dynamic observation of 494 patients, men and women, aged 38–84 years with acute ischemic stroke of hemispheric localization, which were divided into the three groups depending on age, was performed. Group 1 – younger than 60 years old, group 2–60–70 years old, group 3 – older than 60 years. All patients underwent standard therapy, according to the recommendations for the treatment of ischemic stroke. The patients underwent comprehensive clinical and instrumental monitoring, which included assessment of somatic and neurological status according to the NIH‑NINDS scales at 1st, 3rd, 10th days and at discharge or death; assessment of the level of social adaptation according to the Bartel scale on 1st, 3rd, 10th days and at discharge, clinical and biochemical blood tests, computed tomography of the brain. Assessment of the quality of therapy was carried out according to specially developed maps using methods of statistical correlation analysis. Results: the most pronounced positive dynamics of neurological status was in the 1st group of patients. The regression of neurological deficit in the 2nd group was worse. The minimal dynamics of neurological deficit was in the 3rd group of patients with cerebral stroke. Most often, the death of patients with cerebral stroke occurred from the development of multiple organ disorders. Conclusions: patients over 70 years of age have the greatest risk of death, due to: a decrease in the reactivity of the body, the presence of initially severe concomitant somatic pathology in patients with admission to hospital; accession of secondary somatic and purulent‑septic complications.


2021 ◽  
pp. 097206342110504
Author(s):  
Pranati Sharma ◽  
Shrikant V. Rege ◽  
Nilesh Jain

Background: From the management perspective, rare medical conditions do not attract enough attention, though their management can often be resource intensive. Increased awareness among health professionals can lead to early diagnosis of cases and prevention of complications leading to improved outcomes. Paediatric spinal tumours are rare disease entities with an annual incidence of approximately 1 per 1 million children. The profile of spinal tumours in the paediatric population is significantly different than that in adults. In this study we retrospectively analyse a heterogenous variety of paediatric spinal tumours which were treated at our institution over the last 6 years, with the goal of contributing to existing knowledge of this relatively rare disease entity. Methods: This retrospective study includes paediatric patients (under 18 years of age) who underwent surgery for primary spinal tumours from 2014 to 2019. The medical records were reviewed retrospectively and the information regarding clinical presentation, tumour location, operative findings, and postoperative status and functional outcome were analysed. The modified McCormick grade was used to assess the neurological status. Patients with spinal metastasis or incomplete medical records were excluded from the study. Results: Of 74 patients with primary spinal tumours operated at our centre between 2014 to 2019, a total of 8 patients (5 males and 3 females) who met the inclusion criteria were identified for the present study. The mean age of the patients included was 12.1±5.3 and the median follow-up period was 24 months. An improvement in the neurological status, as assessed by the modified McCormick grade, was seen in 37.5% of the patients. Three of the patients received adjuvant radiotherapy, post-surgical resection. A unique feature of this series was the wide variety of cases encountered, as each case had a different histopathological diagnosis, despite being limited by its sample size. Conclusion: Primary paediatric spinal cord tumours are rare, and surgical resection remains the treatment of choice. Adjuvant therapy is warranted in cases of high-grade lesions or recurrences. Through this study, we realised that due to its relative rarity and low incidence, a lack of public awareness can often lead to disproportionately increased morbidity and mortality. Prospective multi-centric studies can provide tools to help develop future management strategies for improved survival rates and reduced complications.


2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (5-1) ◽  
pp. 231-235
Author(s):  
B. V. Martynov ◽  
V. Ye. Parfenov ◽  
D. V. Svistov ◽  
G. Ye. Trufanov ◽  
V. A. Fokin ◽  
...  

283 patients with gliomas were included in this study. Age, sex, neurological status and Karnovsky performance were analyzed before and after surgery, also tumor location, type and volume of surgical resection, postoperative complications were considered. Volume of tumor resection did not depend on glioma localization, excluding deep located tumors, in which case stereotactic cryotomy was performed (p < 0,01). In cases of stereotactic cryotomy postoperative neurological deficit worsening was noted in 12,5%, in patients with open biopsy and partial resection — 10,9%, and in case of total or subtotal tumor resection in 7,0% (p > 0,05). Partial gliom resection often related with postoperative complications and neurological deficit worsening then open surgery total tumour resection. Stereotactic cryotomy does not lead to bigger postoperative complications frequency in comparisons with open surgery.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Liao Wu ◽  
Ying Sun ◽  
Guihua Ni ◽  
Bo Sun ◽  
Xiaoyu Ni ◽  
...  

Objective. This research aimed at investigating the efficacy of edaravone combined with clopidogrel on acute cerebral infarction (ACI) and its influence on the neurological deficit and life function. Methods. Totally, 154 ACI cases were included and then divided into the control group (CG) (n = 71) and research group (RG) (n = 83) according to the treatment methods. Patients in the CG were treated with clopidogrel alone, and those in the RG were under edaravone-clopidogrel combination therapy. The efficacy, adverse reactions, NIHSS score, cerebral hemodynamic indexes, and Fugl-Meyer scale (FMA) and Barthel index (BI) of activities of daily living (ADL) scores were observed. Results. Compared with before treatment, the symptoms of both groups were improved after treatment: the NIHSS scores decreased, FMA and ADL scores increased, and cerebral hemodynamic indexes were improved. Compared with the CG, the efficacy and cerebral hemodynamic indexes of the RG were better, the adverse reactions were equivalent, the NIHSS score was lower, and the ADL and FMA scores were higher. Conclusion. Edaravone combined with clopidogrel can effectively treat ACI and improve the neurological deficit and life function of patients.


Author(s):  
E Leck ◽  
A Dakson ◽  
M Butler ◽  
G Thibault-Halman ◽  
S Christie

Background: The evaluation of patients presenting with spinal metastatic disease is often challenging. The Tokuhashi scale intends to facilitate this process. We conducted this study to investigate its clinical utility in surgical-decision making in patients with spinal metastasis. Methods: The oncology database was used to allocate 285 patients with spinal metastasis between 2010 and 2015. The Tokuhashi scale components were determined from a chart review. Results: Based on the Tokuhashi scale, there was 69.1% in the non-operative/radiation group (group 1), 23.2% in the palliative/excisional surgical group (group2) and 7.7% in the surgical group (group 3). Using Kaplan-Meiers estimate, survival time was significantly different across the three groups with means 232.8±30.8, 352.3±49.2 and 568.3±206.1 days, respectively. A significantly higher proportion of patients (84.6%) were treated non-surgically in group 1, compared to 45.5% in group 3 (X2=19.5, P<0.001). However, there was no correlation between the type of surgical interventions (i.e. instrumented decompression, decompression alone, percutaneous vertebral augmentation and instrumented vertebral augmentation) and the Tokuhashi score. Conclusions: This review illustrates the utility of the Tokuhashi scale in predicting survival. However, it does not address the new role of emerging different surgical strategies for the treatment of spinal metastasis and lacks information concerning spinal instability.


2013 ◽  
Vol 119 (6) ◽  
pp. 1395-1400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Gempt ◽  
Julia Gerhardt ◽  
Vivien Toth ◽  
Stefanie Hüttinger ◽  
Yu-Mi Ryang ◽  
...  

Object Brain metastases occur in 10% to 40% of patients harboring cancer. In cases of neurosurgical metastasis resection, all postoperative neurological deterioration should be avoided. Reasons for postoperative deficits can be direct tissue damage due to resection, hemorrhage, venous congestive infarcts, or arterial ischemic events leading to tissue infarction. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether postoperative ischemic infarctions occur in surgery for brain metastasis and to determine their influence on new postoperative neurological deficits. Methods Patients who underwent resection of brain metastases and had preoperative and early postoperative (within 48 hours) MRI scans, including diffusion-weighted imaging sequences and apparent diffusion coefficient maps, between January 2009 and May 2012 were included in this study. Clinical and histopathological data (histopathological results, pre- and postoperative neurological status, and previous tumor-specific therapy) were recorded. Results One hundred twenty-two patients (56 male, 66 female) who underwent resection of brain metastases were included. The patients' mean age was 60 years (range 21–89 years). The mean time span from initial tumor diagnosis to resection of brain metastasis was 44 months (range 0–338 months). The mean preoperative Karnofsky Performance Status was 80% (exact mean 76% ± 17% [SD]), and the mean postoperative value was 80% (exact mean 78% ± 17%). Twelve (9.8%) of the 122 patients had postoperative permanent worsening of a neurological deficit or a new permanent neurological deficit; 44 (36.1%) of the 122 patients had postoperative ischemic lesions. When comparing patients with and without previous brain irradiation, 53.8% of patients with previous brain irradiation had ischemic lesions on postoperative imaging compared with 31.3% of patients without previous brain irradiation (p = 0.033). There was a significant association between ischemia and postoperative neurological status deterioration (transient or permanent); 13 (29.5%) of 44 patients with ischemic lesions had deterioration of their neurological status compared with 7 (9%) of the 78 patients who did not have ischemic lesions (p = 0.003). Conclusions This study demonstrates a high prevalence of vascular incidents in patients undergoing resection for metastatic brain disease. Patients harboring postoperative ischemic lesions detected by MRI have a higher rate of neurological deficits (transient or permanent). Patients who had previous irradiation therapy are at higher risk of developing postoperative ischemic lesions. A large number of postoperative neurological deficits are caused by ischemic incidents.


1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 279-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Muto ◽  
F. Avella

We report our experience of treating lumbar herniated disc by intradiscal injection of an oxygen-ozone mixture. Ozone (03, MW = 48) is a triatomic molecule, having antiviral, disinfectant and antiseptic properties. Several mechanisms of action have been proposed to explain the efficacy of the treatment: analgesic action; anti-inflammatory action; oxidant action on the proteoglycan in the nucleus pulposus. We treated 93 patients (50 women, 43 men) aged from 24 to 45 yrs (average age 38 yrs) from June 1996 to April 1998. All patients presented sciatica and/or low back pain, lasting two or more months; patients had in the mean time received both medical and physical therapy with mild or no benefit. Diagnostic tests in all patients included plain film x-ray, CT and/or MR at the level of the lumbar spine disclasing a herniated or protruded disc with nerve root or thecal sac compression. We divided patients to be treated in to two groups: the first one group included 35 patients already selected for surgery who presented herniated or protruded disc with radicular pain with associated neurological deficit (hypoesthesia and partial loss of reflex). Those patients had already had medical and physical therapy for two or more months and agreed to try the percutaneous treatment before surgery. CT or MR in this group demonstrated the presence of intraforaminal, extra or sub-ligamentary and sequestrated herniated disc. The second group included 58 patients with radicular pain but without neurological deficit; patients in this group had received medical and/or physical therapy for two or more months and CT showed the presence of a small subligamentary herniated or protruded disc. We considered the results according to the modified MacNab method. In the first group we had “failure” in all patients; in seven cases the symptoms improved for one month, but recurred later on. In the second group 45 patients had “success” showing complete clinical recovery within five to six days after treatment, all remained without symptoms up to six months or more of follow-up. The remaining 13 patients presented the same symptoms again within three months after a temporary clinical recovery. The goal of this study was to present this new technique that can also be compared with a previous study of different percutaneous treatment. Clinical and neuroradiological indications and the contraindications are well known, and must be followed to achieve good results and avoid complications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leif E. R. Simmatis ◽  
Stephen H. Scott ◽  
Albert Y. Jin

AbstractRecent work has highlighted that people who have had TIA may have abnormal motor and cognitive function. We aimed to quantify deficits in a cohort of individuals who had TIA and measured changes in their abilities to perform behavioural tasks over 1 year of follow-up using the Kinarm Exoskeleton robot. We additionally considered performance and change over time in an active control cohort of migraineurs. Individuals who had TIA or migraine completed 8 behavioural tasks that assessed cognition as well as motor and sensory functionality in the arm. Participants in the TIA cohort were assessed at 2, 6, 12, and 52 weeks after symptom resolution. Migraineurs were assessed at 2 and 52 weeks after symptom resolution. We measured overall performance on each task using an aggregate metric called Task Score and quantified any significant change in performance including the potential influence of learning. We recruited 48 individuals to the TIA cohort and 28 individuals to the migraine cohort. Individuals in both groups displayed impairments on robotic tasks within 2 weeks of symptom cessation and also at approximately 1 year after symptom cessation, most commonly in tests of cognitive-motor integration. Up to 51.3% of people in the TIA cohort demonstrated an impairment on a given task within 2-weeks of symptom resolution, and up to 27.3% had an impairment after 1 year. In the migraine group, these numbers were 37.5% and 31.6%, respectively. We identified that up to 18% of participants in the TIA group, and up to 10% in the migraine group, displayed impairments that persisted for up to 1 year after symptom resolution. Finally, we determined that a subset of both cohorts (25–30%) experienced statistically significant deteriorations in performance after 1 year. People who have experienced transient neurological symptoms, such as those that arise from TIA or migraine, may continue to experience lasting neurological impairments. Most individuals had relatively stable task performance over time, with some impairments persisting for up to 1 year. However, some individuals demonstrated substantial changes in performance, which highlights the heterogeneity of these neurological disorders. These findings demonstrate the need to consider factors that contribute to lasting neurological impairment, approaches that could be developed to alleviate the lasting effects of TIA or migraine, and the need to consider individual neurological status, even following transient neurological symptoms.


2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Yen ◽  
Vikas Kuriachan ◽  
Jeff Yach ◽  
Andrew Howard

Object. The authors assessed the long-term results of anterior decompressive and vertebral body reconstructive surgery in which the Wellesley Wedge was applied in patients with metastatic spinal lesions over the life span of these individuals. Methods. The authors performed a retrospective review of the outcome of 27 consecutively treated patients who underwent surgery for thoracic or lumbar spine metastases. Decompressive surgery was performed via an anterior thoracotomy and/or retroperitoneal approach depending on the level of the lesion. The spine was reconstructed using a U-shaped plate with an interposed methylmethacrylate strut known as the Wellesley Wedge. Results. Thirty percent of patients suffered medical complications whereas 22% experienced postoperative improvement, as reflected by an improved Frankel grade. Used in patients with a variety of primary tumor types, a spectrum of ages and neurological status, and extensive preoperative osseous spinal involvement and deformity, the Wellesley Wedge resulted in spinal stability for the duration of patients' lives in 92%. Conclusions. In this series the patient selection process for surgery was a challenge yet to be solved; however, considering the durability of the Wellesley Wedge itself, the authors will continue to use it in selected patients.


1982 ◽  
Vol 57 (5) ◽  
pp. 617-621 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold M. Meirowsky

✓ Secondary operations for the removal of retained bone fragments have been performed in 116 of the 1133 casualties with craniocerebral missile wounds incurred in the war in Vietnam, 1967 to 1970. Various complications developed in 19 of these 116 casualties. Dehiscence of the wound occurred in eight patients, five of whom developed a cerebrospinal fluid fistula. Infection manifested itself in 16 cases with retained bone fragments prior to their secondary removal; however, infection first became apparent after the secondary operation in seven patients. Two of the seven patients with infection died. The neurological deficit became worse in four of the 116 patients following the secondary removal of a bone fragment: there was complete resolution of that deficit in one, and return to the neurological status existing after the initial operation in another; the other two patients developed a permanently disabling neurological deficit, an incidence of 1.7%.


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