Pathological findings in acute experimental spinal cord trauma

1971 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 700-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas B. Ducker ◽  
Glenn W. Kindt ◽  
Ludwig G. Kempe
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Clinical Improvement ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Pathological Findings ◽  
Pathological Changes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Acute Trauma ◽  
Central Gray ◽  
Fine Print

✓ This study shows that spinal cord pathology secondary to acute trauma in monkeys evolves with stepwise sequential changes. The acute damage is more central than peripheral. Depending on the amount of trauma, the subacute damage may be limited to central gray necrosis or may progress or evolve to include the neighboring white matter. These pathological changes may be taking place even in the presence of clinical improvement.

Review of the effect of spinal cord trauma on the vessels and blood flow in the spinal cord

1976 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 638-646 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan N. Sandler ◽  
Charles H. Tator
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Blood Flow ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Species Variation ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Compression Injury ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The effect of spinal cord trauma on the vasculature and blood flow of the spinal cord is reviewed. Both quantitative and nonquantitative studies are critically discussed and reasons sought for some of the major controversies that have arisen. Differences in methodology, species variation, and variation in the degree and type of cord injury may all be important factors in producing the conflicting results reported in the literature. In general, it can be said that trauma has a profound effect on the vasculature and blood flow in the cord and that severe compression injury of the cord causes marked ischemia in the gray and white matter.

Presence and significance of CD-95 (Fas/APO1) expression after spinal cord injury

2001 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mercedes Zurita ◽  
Jesús Vaquero ◽  
Isabel Zurita
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Gray Matter ◽  
Spinal Cord Tissue ◽  
Injured Spinal Cord ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
Positive Immunostaining ◽  
Fine Print

Object. A glycoprotein, CD95 (Fas/APO1) is widely considered to be implicated in the development of apoptosis in a number of tissues. Based on the hypothesis that apoptosis is related to cell death after spinal cord injury (SCI), the authors studied the presence and distribution of CD95 (Fas/APO1)-positive cells in injured spinal cord tissue for the purpose of determining the significance of this protein during the early phases of SCI. Methods. The presence and distribution of cells showing positive immunostaining for CD95 (Fas/APO1) were studied 1, 4, 8, 24, 48, and 72 hours and 1, 2, and 4 weeks after induction of experimental SCI in rats. Studies were conducted using a monoclonal antibody to the CD95 (Fas/APO1) protein. Positivity for CD95 (Fas/APO1) was observed in apoptotic cells, mainly in the gray matter, 1 hour after trauma, and the number of immunostained cells increased for the first 8 hours, at which time the protein was expressed in both gray and white matter. From 24 to 72 hours postinjury, the number of immunostained cells decreased in the gray matter, but increased in the white matter. From then on, there were fewer CD95 (Fas/APO1)-positive cells, but some cells in the white matter still exhibited positive immunostaining 1 and 2 weeks after injury. At 4 weeks, there remained no CD95 (Fas/APO1)-positive cells in injured spinal cord. Conclusions. These findings indicate that CD95 (Fas/APO1) is expressed after SCI, suggesting a role for this protein in the development of apoptosis after trauma and the possibility of a new therapeutic approach to SCI based on blocking the CD95 (Fas/APO1) system.

Norepinephrine levels in experimental spinal cord trauma

1977 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen E. Rawe ◽  
Robert H. Roth ◽  
Margaret Boadle-Biber ◽  
William F. Collins
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Tyrosine Hydroxylase ◽  
Concentration Gradient ◽  
Neurological Function ◽  
Spinal Cord Tissue ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Spinal Cord Segment ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Levels of norepinephrine (NE) in the spinal cord tissue of nontraumatized cats are highest in the cervical and lumbar enlargements. A rather uniform but slightly increasing concentration gradient from cephalad to caudad is observed in the thoracic segments. A 500 gm-cm trauma at the T-5 or C-7 spinal cord segment did not demonstrate any significant increase in NE levels measured sequentially over a 4-hour period after trauma. Dopamine levels could not be detected in the nontraumatized or traumatized cat spinal cords. Four traumatized cats treated with alpha methyl tyrosine, a tyrosine hydroxylase inhibitor, and followed clinically for 5 months showed no improvement in neurological function when compared to untreated traumatized cats. This study does not support the norepinephrine hypothesis of experimental spinal cord trauma.

Histopathology of transistory traumatic paraplegia in the monkey

1971 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 272-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franklin C. Wagner ◽  
George J. Dohrmann ◽  
Paul C. Bucy
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Gray Matter ◽  
Internal Layers ◽  
Central Gray Matter ◽  
Microscopic Appearance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Injured Area ◽  
Hemorrhagic Lesion ◽  
Central Gray ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The microscopic appearance of the primate spinal cord within a 4-hour interval following the delivery of a direct force sufficient to produce a transitory paraplegia was investigated by light microscopy. The resulting hemorrhagic lesion involved primarily the central gray matter and was attributed to the direct effect of the trauma on the vessels in the gray matter with a consequent impairment of blood supply to the injured area. Chromatolysis, vacuolation, and alterations in cytoplasmic density and stainability were observed within the neurons. The edematous changes in the white matter, which were more marked in the internal layers relative to the external layers, appeared minimal and explain in part why the paraplegia was transient.

Reversible spinal cord trauma: a model for electrical monitoring of spinal cord function

1972 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 402-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Croft ◽  
Jerald S. Brodkey ◽  
Frank E. Nulsen
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Evoked Potentials ◽  
Sensitive Indicator ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cortical Evoked Potentials ◽  
Spinal Cord Damage ◽  
Sensory Transmission ◽  
Spinal Cord Function ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Cortical evoked potentials in anesthetized cats were recorded by a noninvasive averaging technique as a means of estimating spinal cord damage. Graded pressure on the spinal cord produced reversible blocking of these potentials. With this type of trauma, block of motor transmission through the cord paralleled the block of sensory transmission, and each seemed to be a sensitive indicator of spinal cord function. The possible use of such monitoring in anesthetized patients undergoing spinal operations is discussed.

Ependymal cyst of the spinal cord

1975 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 757-760 ◽  
Author(s):  
James A. Mosso ◽  
M. Anthony Verity
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Pathological Findings ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ependymal Cyst ◽  
Fine Print

✓ A case with extramedullary ependymal cyst of the spinal cord is presented. The clinical, operative, and pathological findings are discussed and a review of previous cases and a nosologic classification of ependymal lined cysts given.

Lateral interscalenic multilevel oblique corpectomies to repair ventral root avulsions after brachial plexus injury in humans: anatomical study and first clinical experience

2001 ◽  
Vol 95 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henri-Dominique Fournier ◽  
Philippe Mercier ◽  
Philippe Menei
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Anterior Approach ◽  
Cervical Spinal Cord ◽  
Anatomical Study ◽  
Ventral Root ◽  
Anterolateral Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Anterior Aspect ◽  
Fine Print

Object. Because central nervous system white matter exerts a powerful inhibitory effect on axonal growth, implantation of nerve grafts or rootlets into the cervical spinal cord following ventral root avulsion injury should, ideally, be performed directly through the ventral root exit zone (VRExZ), which is located near the anteromedial aspect of the anterior horn; the grafts/rootlets should not be implanted into the white matter of the lateral cord. This is not possible when using a conservative posterior approach. Therefore, the authors have studied the anatomy encountered when using the anterolateral approach and evaluated the technique in the particular case of avulsed ventral nerve roots. They also present a case illustration of the procedure, which is used currently in their department. Methods. Anterior access to the rootlets is obtained using a lateral interscalenic approach; the vertebral artery is exposed and mobilized, and oblique drilling of the vertebral bodies (VBs) is performed. Because the articular processes and half of the VBs are preserved, fusion is not required. The approach allows the surgeon to expose the anterior aspect of the cervical dura and the entire length of the emerging spinal nerves. The anterior aspect of the dura is opened at the desired levels for VRExZ exposure, and the position is ideal for implantation of the graft/rootlets. The interscalenic dissection is mandatory so that the lesions of the supraclavicular plexus can be evaluated and repaired. If necessary, the anterior approach allows for exploration of the infraclavicular plexus during the same procedure. Conclusions. The use of a true anterior approach to the ventral rootlets appears to be a valuable and appropriate approach that avoids extensive laminectomy/facetectomy while reimplantation is performed through the anterolateral sulcus itself. In this approach, however, reimplantation of dorsal roots into the spinal cord remains impossible.

Studies in experimental spinal cord trauma

1974 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynn S. Hedeman ◽  
M. Kent Shellenberger ◽  
J. H. Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Significant Elevation ◽  
Small Pilot Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Essentially Normal ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The authors report a study of levels of norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA), and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the traumatized spinal cords of dogs, and with alpha-mehtyltyrosine before and after injury. There was a significant elevation of DA 15 to 45 minutes after injury. NE was significantly reduced. Twenty-four hours of pretreatment with alpha-methyltyrosine depleted cord catecholamines and prevented trauma-induced DA elevation. Alpha-methyltyrosine given 15 minutes after the trauma did not prevent this trauma-related DA elevation. In a small pilot study in cats, DA was elevated and NE remained essentially normal.

Calcifying pseudoneoplasms of the spine with myelopathy

2000 ◽  
Vol 93 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew T. Mayr ◽  
Stephen Hunter ◽  
Scott C. Erwood ◽  
Regis W. Haid
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Cervical Spine ◽  
Thoracic Spine ◽  
Radiological Evaluation ◽  
Pathological Findings ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Progressive Myelopathy ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The authors describe two cases of calcifying pseudoneoplasms, rare degenerative lesions that mimic tumor or infection. One case involved the cervical spine and the second the thoracic spine. Both patients experienced progressive myelopathy from extradural compression of the spinal cord. The radiological evaluation, pathological findings in the lesions, treatment, and follow up are described. Total or subtotal excision can relieve symptoms and prevent recurrence of this lesion.

Biogenic amine concentrations in traumatized spinal cords of cats

1974 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Eric Naftchi ◽  
Margaret Demeny ◽  
Vincent DeCrescito ◽  
John J. Tomasula ◽  
Eugene S. Flamm ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Biogenic Amines ◽  
Biogenic Amine ◽  
Sodium Succinate ◽  
Aminocaproic Acid ◽  
Spinal Cord Trauma ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Methyl Prednisolone ◽  
Epsilon Aminocaproic Acid ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Concentrations of norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA), serotonin (5-HT), and histamine (HIST) were determined in spinal cords of five groups of cats. One group underwent laminectomy only; a second untreated group received a 400 gm-cm impact at the T-9 level. These were compared with three groups treated with epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA), methyl prednisolone sodium succinate (MP), and a combination of EACA and MP after similar trauma. The biogenic amines were measured in three 1-cm segments of the cord, rostral, middle, and caudal, 1 hour after trauma. There was no change in NE concentration in any of the three segments after impact compared with laminectomized controls, nor was the NE concentration in the impacted (middle) area higher than that in the rostral or caudal sites. Although the NE content of the cord in treated animals decreased compared to that of laminectomized controls, the decrease was not significant. The concentration of DA, however, significantly increased after impact and significantly decreased after treatment with EACA and EACA plus MP. There was no significant change in 5-HT levels, but the level of HIST increased significantly after impact and was lowered by treatment with EACA and EACA with MP. The implications of these changes in biogenic amines in spinal cord trauma are discussed.

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