Pencil gliomas of the aqueduct of Sylvius

1982 ◽  
Vol 57 (5) ◽  
pp. 690-696 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert A. Sanford ◽  
Jose Bebin ◽  
R. Wayne Smith

✓ The authors present the cases of two young adults with low-grade astrocytomas limited to the aqueductal region of the tectum of the mesencephalon. The characteristic presentation of hydrocephalus without brain-stem signs is described. Careful radiological examination, including computerized axial tomography, failed to reveal any evidence of tumor. The diagnosis was established at postmortem examination. Literature review yielded 12 previous cases of similar presentation.

1977 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 256-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur I. Kobrine ◽  
Eugene Timmins ◽  
Rodwan K. Rajjoub ◽  
Hugo V. Rizzoli ◽  
David O. Davis

✓ The authors documented by computerized axial tomography a case of massive brain swelling occurring within 20 minutes of a closed head injury. It is suggested that the cause of the brain swelling is acute vascular dilatation.


1976 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 556-561 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph C. Maroon ◽  
John S. Kennerdell

✓ The authors describe their microsurgical lateral orbital approach to intraorbital tumors. In seven patients ultrasonic scanning, computerized axial tomography, polytomography, orbital venography, and arteriography have allowed precise intraorbital tumor localization relative to the optic nerve. The authors believe that circumscribed tumors superior, lateral, or inferior to the optic nerve can be safely and completely removed through a 30–35-mm lateral skin incision with microsurgical dissecting techniques. A combined neurosurgical-ophthalmological team approach is emphasized.


1976 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 759-760 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred C. Shipps ◽  
Anthony D'Agostino ◽  
John Raaf

✓ The authors describe a frame with guides to facilitate accurate correlation of the planes of brain-specimen sections with computerized axial tomography brain scans.


1976 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 668-675 ◽  
Author(s):  
Willem Wassenaar ◽  
Charles H. Tator

✓ Currently available diagnostic tracers for brain tumors are not specific. Tumor-specific tracers would improve the detection of brain tumors by gamma encephalography. Glucose is an important substrate for tumor metabolism and is known to be taken up in large amounts. The authors have studied five labeled carbohydrates in an attempt to find a tumor-specific tracer: three were tritiated (L-galactose-1-3H, L-fucose-3H, and 4,6-dideoxy-xylo-hexose-3H) and two were radioiodinated (methyl-6-125I-6-deoxy-D-glucoside and 6-125I-6-deoxy-D-glucose). The uptake of these tracers by a transplantable mouse ependymoblastoma after intravenous injection was determined by liquid and well scintillation counting. The highest tumor-to-brain ratio was 7.1 to 1 for the tritiated tracers and 6.2 to 1 for the radioiodinated tracers. Although these ratios are not high enough for gamma encephalography, one of the iodinated tracers may be useful for enhancement of contrast in computerized axial tomography.


2000 ◽  
Vol 93 (supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 37-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
William F. Regine ◽  
Roy A. Patchell ◽  
James M. Strottmann ◽  
Ali Meigooni ◽  
Michael Sanders ◽  
...  

Object. This investigation was performed to determine the tolerance and toxicities of split-course fractionated gamma knife radiosurgery (FSRS) given in combination with conventional external-beam radiation therapy (CEBRT). Methods. Eighteen patients with previously unirradiated, gliomas treated between March 1995 and January 2000 form the substrate of this report. These included 11 patients with malignant gliomas, six with low-grade gliomas, and one with a recurrent glioma. They were stratified into three groups according to tumor volume (TV). Fifteen were treated using the initial FSRS dose schedule and form the subject of this report. Group A (four patients), had TV of 5 cm3 or less (7 Gy twice pre- and twice post-CEBRT); Group B (six patients), TV greater than 5 cm3 but less than or equal to 15 cm3 (7 Gy twice pre-CEBRT and once post-CEBRT); and Group C (five patients), TV greater than 15 cm3 but less than or equal to 30 cm3 (7 Gy once pre- and once post-CEBRT). All patients received CEBRT to 59.4 Gy in 1.8-Gy fractions. Dose escalation was planned, provided the level of toxicity was acceptable. All patients were able to complete CEBRT without interruption or experiencing disease progression. Unacceptable toxicity was observed in two Grade 4/Group B patients and two Grade 4/Group C patients. Eight patients required reoperation. In three (38%) there was necrosis without evidence of tumor. Neuroimaging studies were available for evaluation in 14 patients. Two had a partial (≥ 50%) reduction in volume and nine had a minor (> 20%) reduction in size. The median follow-up period was 15 months (range 9–60 months). Six patients remained alive for 3 to 60 months. Conclusions. The imaging responses and the ability of these patients with intracranial gliomas to complete therapy without interruption or experiencing disease progression is encouraging. Excessive toxicity derived from combined FSRS and CEBRT treatment, as evaluated thus far in this study, was seen in patients with Group B and C lesions at the 7-Gy dose level. Evaluation of this novel treatment strategy with dose modification is ongoing.


2002 ◽  
Vol 97 ◽  
pp. 542-550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Levivier ◽  
David Wikler ◽  
Nicolas Massager ◽  
Philippe David ◽  
Daniel Devriendt ◽  
...  

Object. The authors review their experience with the clinical development and routine use of positron emission tomography (PET) during stereotactic procedures, including the use of PET-guided gamma knife radiosurgery (GKS). Methods. Techniques have been developed for the routine use of stereotactic PET, and accumulated experience using PET-guided stereotactic procedures over the past 10 years includes more than 150 stereotactic biopsies, 43 neuronavigation procedures, and 34 cases treated with GKS. Positron emission tomography—guided GKS was performed in 24 patients with primary brain tumors (four pilocytic astrocytomas, five low-grade astrocytomas or oligodendrogliomas, seven anaplastic astrocytomas or ependymomas, five glioblastomas, and three neurocytomas), five patients with metastases (single or multiple lesions), and five patients with pituitary adenomas. Conclusions. Data obtained with PET scanning can be integrated with GKS treatment planning, enabling access to metabolic information with high spatial accuracy. Positron emission tomography data can be successfully combined with magnetic resonance imaging data to provide specific information for defining the target volume for the radiosurgical treatment in patients with recurrent brain tumors, such as glioma, metastasis, and pituitary adenoma. This approach is particularly useful for optimizing target selection for infiltrating or ill-defined brain lesions. The use of PET scanning contributed data in 31 cases (93%) and information that was specifically utilized to adapt the target volume in 25 cases (74%). It would seem that the integration of PET data into GKS treatment planning may represent an important step toward further developments in radiosurgery: this approach provides additional information that may open new perspectives for the optimization of the treatment of brain tumors.


1977 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroshi Matsumura ◽  
Yasumasa Makita ◽  
Kuniyuki Someda ◽  
Akinori Kondo

✓ We have operated on 12 of 14 cases of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in the posterior fossa since 1968, with one death. The lesions were in the cerebellum in 10 cases (three anteromedial, one central, three lateral, and three posteromedial), and in the cerebellopontine angle in two; in two cases the lesions were directly related to the brain stem. The AVM's in the anterior part of the cerebellum were operated on through a transtentorial occipital approach.


1991 ◽  
Vol 74 (2) ◽  
pp. 270-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katsuji Shima ◽  
Anthony Marmarou

✓ The degree of brain-stem dysfunction associated with high-level fluid-percussion injury (3.0 to 3.8 atm) was investigated in anesthetized cats. Measurements were made of the animals' intracranial pressure (ICP), pressure-volume index (PVI), far-field brain-stem auditory evoked responses (BAER's), and cerebral blood flow (CBF). The animals were classified into two groups based on the severity of neuropathological damage to the brain stem after trauma: Group 1 had mild intraparenchymal and subarachnoid hemorrhages and Group 2 had severe intraparenchymal and subarachnoid hemorrhages. The ICP values in Group 1 were insignificantly lower than those in Group 2, while the PVI values in Group 2 were clearly lower (p < 0.05). Immediately after the injury, peaks II, III, and IV of the BAER's demonstrated a transitory and marked suppression. One Group 1 and two Group 2 animals showed the disappearance of peak V. In Group 1, the latencies of peak II, III, and IV gradually increased until 60 to 150 minutes postinjury, then returned to 95% of baseline value at 8 hours; however, the animals in Group 2 showed poor recovery of latencies. Two hours after brain injury, the CBF decreased to 40% of the preinjury measurement in both groups (p < 0.001). In contrast to Group 2, the CBF in Group 1 returned to 86.8% of the preinjury measurement by 8 hours following the injury. Changes in PVI, BAER, and CBF correlated well with the degree of brain-stem injury following severe head injury'- These data indicate that high-level fluid-percussion injury (> 3.0 atm) is predominantly a model of brain-stem injury.


1971 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 571-576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aneel N. Patel ◽  
Alan E. Richardson

✓ An analysis of 3000 ruptured intracranial aneurysms revealed 58 cases in patients under the age of 19 years. There was a striking incidence of aneurysms of the carotid termination and anterior cerebral complex, accounting for 43 of 58 cases, and of these 20 involved the terminal portion of the carotid artery. Vasospasm occurred slightly less often than in adults and infarction was only seen in one postmortem examination. The surgical mortality in alert patients was 7% whereas in a comparable bedrest group it was 38%. This good tolerance to surgery was evident whether intracranial operation or carotid ligation was used, but the surgical method was not randomly allocated.


1993 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary K. Steinberg ◽  
Charles G. Drake ◽  
Sydney J. Peerless

✓ Deliberate occlusion of the basilar or vertebral arteries was performed in 201 patients with intracranial aneurysms, where the aneurysmal neck could not be clipped directly. The aneurysms arose from the basilar apex in 83 cases, the basilar trunk in 46, the vertebrobasilar junction in 35, and the vertebral artery in 37; 87% of the aneurysms were classified as giant lesions (> 2.5 cm). There were 85 upper basilar occlusions, 41 lower basilar occlusions, 29 bilateral vertebral occlusions, and 48 unilateral vertebral artery occlusions. The clinical follow-up period varied from 1 to 23 years, with a mean of 9.5 years. Overall long-term results were excellent in 68% of the patients, good in 5%, and poor in 3%; 24% died. Clinical outcome varied according to aneurysm site; excellent or good results were achieved in 64% of the patients with basilar apex, 76% with basilar trunk, 74% with vertebrobasilar junction, and 87% with vertebral artery aneurysms. Clinical outcome also varied depending on preoperative grade: 86% of the patients with an excellent presenting grade achieved excellent results. The size of the posterior communicating arteries was a good predictor of tolerance to basilar artery occlusion (p < 0.05). Successful aneurysm thrombosis was achieved in 78% of the patients. The neurological status in 26 patients (13%) deteriorated due to vertebrobasilar ischemia occurring within the 1st postoperative week, and thrombosis or embolism was implicated much more frequently than hemodynamic insufficiency. Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in 14 patients, vasospasm in five patients, and surgical trauma in seven patients accounted for additional morbidity in the 1st month following operation; however, many of these patients ultimately made an excellent recovery. Late vertebrobasilar ischemic complications or neurological deterioration from persistent mass effect occurred in 4% of patients with successful aneurysm thrombosis 6 weeks to 18 months after arterial ligation. Among the 43 patients with incompletely thrombosed aneurysms, 67% developed early or late neurological deterioration from SAH, progressive brain-stem compression, or brain-stem stroke, with 86% of the complications proving fatal.


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