Harvey W. Cushing and cerebrovascular surgery: Part I, aneurysms

2004 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 547-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron A. Cohen-Gadol ◽  
Dennis D. Spencer
Keyword(s):  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Surgical Techniques ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
Recurrent Hemorrhage ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cerebrovascular Surgery ◽  
Neurological Surgery ◽  
Modern Era ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The development of surgical techniques for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms has paralleled the evolution of the specialty of neurological surgery. During the Cushing era, intracranial aneurysms were considered inoperable and only ligation of the carotid artery was performed. Cushing understood the limitations of this approach and advised the need for a more thorough understanding of aneurysm pathology before further consideration could be given to the surgical treatment of cerebral aneurysms. Despite his focus on brain tumors, Cushing's contributions to the discipline of neurovascular surgery are of great importance. With the assistance of Sir Charles Symonds, Cushing described the syndrome of subarachnoid hemorrhage. He considered inserting muscle strips into cerebral aneurysms to promote aneurysm sac thrombosis and designed the “silver clip,” which was modified by McKenzie and later used by Dandy to clip the first intracranial aneurysm. Cushing was the first surgeon to wrap aneurysms in muscle fragments to prevent recurrent hemorrhage. He established the foundation on which pioneers such as Norman Dott and Walter Dandy launched the modern era of neurovascular surgery.

Surgical experiences with giant intracranial aneurysms

1984 ◽  
Vol 61 (6) ◽  
pp. 1009-1028 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsay Symon ◽  
Janos Vajda
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Mortality Rate ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Visual Loss ◽  
Considerable Improvement ◽  
Brain Circulation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Space Occupying Lesion ◽  
Fine Print

✓ A series of 35 patients with 36 giant aneurysms is presented. Thirteen patients presented following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and 22 with evidence of a space-occupying lesion without recent SAH. The preferred technique of temporary trapping of the aneurysm, evacuation of the contained thrombus, and occlusion of the neck by a suitable clip is described. The danger of attempted ligation in atheromatous vessels is stressed. Intraoperatively, blood pressure was adjusted to keep the general brain circulation within autoregulatory limits. Direct occlusion of the aneurysm was possible in over 80% of the cases. The mortality rate was 8% in 36 operations. Six percent of patients had a poor result. Considerable improvement in visual loss was evident in six of seven patients in whom this was a presenting feature, and in four of seven with disturbed eye movements.

Prevalence of cerebral aneurysms in patients with persistent primitive trigeminal artery

1999 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 865-867 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harry J. Cloft ◽  
Nasser Razack ◽  
David F. Kallmes
Keyword(s):  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Case Reports ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
Trigeminal Artery ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Persistent Primitive Trigeminal Artery ◽  
Unbiased Manner ◽  
Primitive Trigeminal Artery ◽  
Fine Print ◽  
Saccular Aneurysms

Object. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of cerebral saccular aneurysms in patients with persistent primitive trigeminal artery (PPTA). The prevalence of cerebral saccular aneurysms in patients with PPTA previously has been reported to be 14 to 32%, but this rate range is unreliable because it is based on collections of published case reports rather than a series of patients chosen in an unbiased manner.Methods. The authors retrospectively evaluated their own series of 34 patients with PPTA to determine the prevalence of cerebral aneurysms in this population. The prevalence of intracranial aneurysms in patients with PPTA was approximately 3% (95% confidence interval 0–9%).Conclusions. The prevalence of intracranial aneurysms in patients with PPTA is no greater than the prevalence of intracranial aneurysms in the general population.

Comparison between perimesencephalic nonaneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage caused by posterior circulation aneurysms

2003 ◽  
Vol 98 (3) ◽  
pp. 529-535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose F. Alén ◽  
Alfonso Lagares ◽  
Ramiro D. Lobato ◽  
Pedro A. Gómez ◽  
Juan J. Rivas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
Clinical Syndrome ◽  
Posterior Circulation ◽  
Ct Scans ◽  
World Federation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Unenhanced Ct ◽  
Posterior Circulation Aneurysms ◽  
Fine Print

Object. Some authors have questioned the need to perform cerebral angiography in patients presenting with a benign clinical picture and a perimesencephalic pattern of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) on initial computerized tomography (CT) scans, because the low probability of finding an aneurysm does not justify exposing patients to the risks of angiography. It has been stated, however, that ruptured posterior circulation aneurysms may present with a perimesencephalic SAH pattern in up to 10% of cases. The aim of the present study was twofold: to define the frequency of the perimesencephalic SAH pattern in the setting of ruptured posterior fossa aneurysms, and to determine whether this clinical syndrome and pattern of bleeding could be reliably and definitely distinguished from that of aneurysmal SAH. Methods. Twenty-eight patients with ruptured posterior circulation aneurysms and 44 with nonaneurysmal perimesencephalic SAH were selected from a series of 408 consecutive patients with spontaneous SAH admitted to the authors' institution. The admission unenhanced CT scans were evaluated by a neuroradiologist in a blinded fashion and classified as revealing a perimesencephalic SAH or a nonperimesencephalic pattern of bleeding. Of the 28 patients with posterior circulation aneurysms, five whose grade was I according to the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies scale were classified as having a perimesencephalic SAH pattern on the initial CT scan. The data show that the likelihood of finding an aneurysm on angiographic studies obtained in a patient with a perimesencephalic SAH pattern is 8.9%. Conversely, ruptured aneurysms of the posterior circulation present with an early perimesencephalic SAH pattern in 16.6% of cases. Conclusions. This study supports the impression that there is no completely sensitive and specific CT pattern for a nonaneurysmal SAH. In addition, the authors believe that there is no specific clinical syndrome that can differentiate patients who have a perimesencephalic SAH pattern caused by an aneurysm from those without aneurysms. Digital subtraction angiography continues to be the gold standard for the diagnosis of cerebral aneurysms and should be performed even in patients who have the characteristic perimesencephalic SAH pattern on admission CT scans.

The crucial decade: modern neurosurgery's definitive development in Harvey Cushing's early research and practice, 1900 to 1910

1997 ◽  
Vol 87 (6) ◽  
pp. 964-971 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel H. Greenblatt
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Success ◽  
Surgical Techniques ◽  
Scientific Work ◽  
The United States ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Ability ◽  
Harvey Cushing ◽  
Neurological Surgery ◽  
Fine Print

✓ When Harvey Cushing announced his full-time commitment to neurological surgery in 1904, it was a discouraging and discouraged enterprise. Other surgeons' mortality rates for patients with brain tumors were 30 to 50%. By 1910 Cushing had operated on 180 tumors; he had a thriving practice, with a patient mortality rate of less than 13%. The three essential ingredients of his success were: 1) a new surgical conceptualization of intracranial pressure (ICP); 2) technical innovations for controlling ICP; and 3) establishment of a large referral base. In the years 1901 through 1905, the implications of his research on the “Cushing reflex” were quickly translated into surgical techniques for controlling ICP. In the period between 1906 and 1910, Cushing built up his referral practice by publishing widely, and especially by lecturing to medical audiences throughout the United States and Canada. His scientific work on ICP was essential to his clinical success, but without his professional and social ability to build a thriving practice, there would have been insufficient material for him to use to improve his approaches.

Use of spiral computerized tomography angiography in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage in whom subtraction angiography did not reveal cerebral aneurysms

2000 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 278-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Hashimoto ◽  
Jun-Ichi Iida ◽  
Yasuo Hironaka ◽  
Masato Okada ◽  
Toshisuke Sakaki
Keyword(s):  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Ct Angiography ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
Spiral Ct ◽  
The Other ◽  
Anterior Communicating Artery ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Spiral Ct Angiography ◽  
Spiral Computerized Tomography ◽  
Fine Print

Object. Patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in whom angiography does not demonstrate diagnostic findings sometimes suffer recurrent disease and actually harbor undetected cerebral aneurysms. The management strategy for such cases remains controversial, but technological advances in spiral computerized tomography (CT) angiography are changing the picture. The purpose of this prospective study was to examine how spiral CT angiography can contribute to the detection of cerebral aneurysms that cannot be visualized on angiography.Methods. In 134 consecutive patients with SAH, a prospective search for the source of bleeding was performed using digital subtraction (DS) and spiral CT angiography. In 21 patients in whom initial DS angiography yielded no diagnostic findings, spiral CT angiography was performed within 3 days. Patients in whom CT angiography provided no diagnostic results underwent second and third DS angiography sessions after approximately 2 weeks and 6 months, respectively.Six patients with perimesencephalic SAH were included in the 21 cases. Six of the other 15 patients had small cerebral aneurysms detectable by spiral CT angiography, five involving the anterior communicating artery and one the middle cerebral artery. Two patients in whom initial angiograms did not demonstrate diagnostic findings proved to have a ruptured dissecting aneurysm of the vertebral artery; in one case this was revealed at autopsy and in the other during the second DS angiography session. A third DS angiography session revealed no diagnostic results in 13 patients.Conclusions. Spiral CT angiography was useful in the detection of cerebral aneurysms in patients with SAH in whom angiography revealed no diagnostic findings. Anterior communicating artery aneurysms are generally well hidden in these types of SAH cases. A repeated angiography session was warranted in patients with nonperimesencephalic SAH and in whom initial angiography revealed no diagnostic findings, although a third session was thought to be superfluous.

Epsilon-aminocaproic acid and recurrent subarachnoid hemorrhage

1980 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
William A. Shucart ◽  
S. K. Hussain ◽  
Paul R. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Aminocaproic Acid ◽  
Antifibrinolytic Agents ◽  
Recurrent Hemorrhage ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Epsilon Aminocaproic Acid ◽  
Arterial Aneurysms ◽  
Ruptured Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Fine Print

✓ A clinical trial of epsilon-aminocaproic acid (EACA) in preventing recurrent hemorrhage from intracranial arterial aneurysms is reported. Previous reports were reviewed, and their results concerning antifibrinolytic agents were inconclusive in establishing their efficacy. One hundred patients with documented ruptured intracranial aneurysms were admitted to this study within 48 hours of the initial hemorrhage: 45 patients received 36 gm of EACA/day, with 11 documented rebleeds and one suspected rebleed; 55 patients did not receive EACA, and there were four documented rebleeds and one suspected rebleed. No benefit was seen from the use of EACA.

Multiple intracranial aneurysms in sickle cell anemia

1985 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 430-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Chris Overby ◽  
Allen S. Rothman
Keyword(s):  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Sickle Cell ◽  
Sickle Cell Anemia ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Neurological Complications ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Hemoglobin S ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Multiple Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Neurological complications of sickle cell anemia occur in 18% to 29% of patients with homozygous hemoglobin S disease. A review of the literature yielded reports of two cases, both treated conservatively, of multiple intracranial aneurysms occurring in patients with sickle cell anemia. The authors report two cases of subarachnoid hemorrhage secondary to multiple intracranial aneurysms in patients with sickle cell anemia. One of the two patients underwent three craniotomies for ablation of six intracranial aneurysms. The techniques used in the treatment of these patients are presented.

Surgical treatment of giant intracranial aneurysms

1979 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takehide Onuma ◽  
Jiro Suzuki
Keyword(s):  
Surgical Treatment ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Conservative Therapy ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
The Other ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Surgical Method ◽  
Carotid Ligation ◽  
Direct Operation ◽  
Fine Print

✓ The authors report the cases of 32 patients with aneurysms measuring 2.5 cm or greater in diameter found among 1080 patients with saccular cerebral aneurysms. Of the 32 patients, 24 patients were treated by direct operation, four by common carotid ligation, and the other four by conservative therapy. The appropriateness of surgery and surgical method are discussed.

Anosmia following operation for cerebral aneurysms in the anterior circulation

1990 ◽  
Vol 72 (6) ◽  
pp. 864-865 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kjeld Dons Eriksen ◽  
Torben Bøge-Rasmussen ◽  
Christian Kruse-Larsen
Keyword(s):  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Cerebral Aneurysms ◽  
Olfactory Nerve ◽  
Aneurysm Surgery ◽  
Anterior Circulation ◽  
Widespread Occurrence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Incidence ◽  
Ruptured Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Damage to the olfactory nerve during frontotemporal approach to the basal cisternal region has not previously been investigated in a quantified manner. In this retrospective study of 25 patients operated on for ruptured intracranial aneurysms via the frontotemporal route, 22 patients suffered postoperatively from anosmia ipsilateral to the side of surgery. This complication most often goes unrecognized by the patient as well as the physician, and attention should be drawn to it because of its widespread occurrence. This investigation demonstrates a high incidence of anosmia (24 (88.9%) of 27 surgical sides) occurring ipsilateral to the frontotemporal approach in aneurysm surgery. Recovery after traumatic anosmia has been recorded up to 5 years after injury.1 Nevertheless, the authors believe that the damage is permanent when lasting 35 months or longer.

Spontaneous healing of intracranial aneurysms after subarachnoid hemorrhage

1978 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 450-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Göran Edner ◽  
David M. C. Forster ◽  
Ladislau Steiner ◽  
Ulf Bergvall
Keyword(s):  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Intracranial Aneurysms ◽  
Surgical Intervention ◽  
Spontaneous Healing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Fine Print

✓ A case of spontaneous intra-aneurysmal thrombosis, verified angiographically, is reported in a patient with subarachnoid hemorrhage and without surgical intervention. The frequency of such an occurrence and the factors involved are reviewed and discussed.

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