Percutaneous Balloon Kyphoplasty Vertebral Augmentation for Compression Fracture Due to Vertebral Metastasis: A 12-Month Retrospective Clinical Study in 72 Patients

Background: Vertebral compression fracture is common in osteoporosis, but can also occur due to bone metastases, for which current treatment options are limited and include bone-strengthening with cement and supportive care. Kyphoplasty is a surgical method of bone augmentation that can reduce pain, stabilize vertebral bone, and restore some or all of the vertebral body height. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical results of balloon kyphoplasty in the correction of vertebral deformity due to metastatic vertebral compression fracture. Material/Methods: A retrospective clinical study included 72 patients (82 vertebral bodies) with metastases resulting in vertebral compression fracture, treated by percutaneous balloon kyphoplasty; 9 patients were found incidentally to have vertebral metastases. Bone mineral density (BMD) levels were measured. Patient responses from questionnaires, including the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain intensity, and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) for disability, were scored. The local kyphosis angle (KA) and the vertebral height ratio (VHR) were measured. All patients were followed up for 12 months. The initial postoperative and 12-month postoperative values, and the preoperative and postoperative values were compared. Results: Following balloon kyphoplasty, the KA, VHR, VAS, and ODI scores significantly improved at the final 12-month follow-up compared with preoperative levels (p<0.05, and p<0.001). There was cement leakage in 6 procedures (8.3%) and adjacent segment fracture in 11 procedures (15.2%). Conclusions: Balloon kyphoplasty was an effective method to reduce pain, reduce disability, and improve quality of life by eliminating kyphotic deformity in pathological vertebral compression fractures due to vertebral metastases

Anterior Servikal Omurga Cerrahisi Revizyonuna Ba��l� ÖZafagus Perforasyonu

Oesophageal perforation is a rare but potentially life threatening complication due to anterior cervical spine surgery (ACSS). In this report, we present a 55-year-old woman with a complication of oesophageal injury following an ACSS with a successful outcome.Özafagus perforasyonu nadir fakat anterior servikal omurga cerrahisine (ASOC) bağlı potansiyel olarak yaşamı tehdit eden bir komplikasyondur. Bu yazıda, ASOC sonrasında özafagus yaralanması komplikasyonu gelişen ve başarıyla tedavi edilen 55 yaşındaki bir kadın hastayı sunduk

Endovascular Treatment of Wide Necked Ruptured Saccular Aneurysms with Flow-Diverter Stent

AIM: Flow diverter (FD) stents have been used in the treatment of unruptured intracranial aneurysms. There are a few studies that report the use of these devices in ruptured blister-like aneurysms. We present 5 consecutive patients, who had ruptured intracranial wide necked or side branch close to the neck of saccular aneurysms, with no other treatment options, treated with FD stents and coil embolization. MATERIAL and METHODS: Between September 2012 and April 2015, 139 ruptured aneurysms of 133 consequent patients were treated. Of these, 48 were surgically treated aneurysms. Five of the remaining 85 aneurysms treated with FD stents. Three aneurysms were in the posterior communicating artery, and 2 were in the supraclinoid internal carotid artery (ICA). Partial coil embolization was performed in addition to FD stents in three patients. All patients were treated in the first 3 days after bleeding. RESULTS: Technical success was 100%. Inappropriate deployment of silk stent and partial thrombus formation occurred in one patient due to the jailed micro-catheter. Inappropriate apposition of stent was corrected with a balloon, and the thrombus resolved with tirofiban, tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) injections. No other complication or death occurred related to the procedure. One patient who had a giant ICA aneurysm and Fisher grade 4 bleeding died due to vasospasm, cerebral edema and sepsis on the postoperative 13th day. The other patients were followed-up uneventfully with computed tomography angiography (CTA) at 6th month and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) at 12th month. CONCLUSION: FD stents can be used in the treatment of ruptured large wide necked or side branch close to the neck of saccular aneurysms when other treatment options can not be used

Patient Selection and Efficacy of Intradiscal Electrothermal Therapy with Respect to the Dallas Discogram Score

AIM: Intervertebral disc degeneration can cause severe low back pain. Intradiscal electrothermal therapy (IDET) is a minimally invasive treatment option for patients with symptomatic internal disc disruption unresponsive to conservative medical care. We aimed to evaluate 12-month pain and functional outcomes and predictors of clinical success in patients with discogenic back pain treated with IDET with respect to the Dallas Discogram Scale (DDS). MATERIAL and METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of patients undergoing IDET for low back pain from 2009 through 2014 at Baskent University, Department of Neurosurgery. A total number of 120 consecutive patients data were collected retrospectively. The degree of disc degeneration was graded using the DDS during discography, and the presence of a high intensity zone (HIZ) on magnetic resonance (MR) imaging was noted. The primary outcome measure was assessment of back pain severity based on the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS); function was assessed by the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Follow-up examinations for ODI and VAS scores were assessed at 1, 6, and 12 months post-treatment. Outcomes were discussed with respect to morphological changes in intervertebral discs on discogram. RESULTS: There was an average 57.39% and 47.16% improvement in VAS and ODI scores, respectively, between pretreatment and 12 months follow-up (p<0.0001 for both comparisons). Predictors of 12-month clinical success was depended on DDS (p< 0.0001), a HIZ on MR imaging (p<0.0001). CONCLUSION: Durable clinical improvements can be realized after IDET in select surgical candidates with mild disc degeneration and HIZ, discography, and low-grade DDS, with more effective treatment results

High Prolactin Level as a Predictor of Vasospasm in Aneurysmal Subarachnoidal Hemorrhage

Background: Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) is a destructive syndrome with a mortality rate of 50%. Recent studies have also suggested a high pervasiveness of hypothalamic-pituitary insufficiency in up to 45% of patients after aSAH. Prolactin has been associated with the pathogenesis of hypertensive irregularities that are linked to pregnancy. Material/Methods: We identified a group of 141 patients with spontaneous SAH due to a ruptured cerebral aneurysm; these patients were operated on at our institution's Neurosurgery and Interventional Radiology Department between 2011 and June 2015. All of the data were obtained retrospectively from medical records. Results: The hormonal abnormalities observed in the initial 24 h after ictus in subjects with subarachnoid SAH were caused by stressful stimulation aggravated by intracranial bleeding. Conclusions: The elevated prolactin levels that occur in patients with aSAH can be used in conjunction with other auxiliary factors that we believe may be beneficial to vasospasm

Association Between Brain Venous Drainage, Cerebral Aneurysm Formation and Aneurysm Rupture

AIM: The brain venous drainage dominance is generally divided into three groups; right or left dominance and co-dominance. There is no study in the literature examining the link between brain venous drainage and aneurysm formation or rupture. Our aim was to evaluate the association between venous dominancy, aneurysm formation and rupture. MATERIAL and METHODS: Eighty-six patients, who underwent cerebral digital subtraction angiography and who had cerebral aneurysms, were included in the study. The angiographic images, patient charts, and tomography images were scanned retrospectively. We recorded the aneurysm's location, size, dome to neck ratio (D/N); the patient's gender, age, whether there was a ruptured aneurysm, smoking history, and/or hypertension; dominance of venous drainage, aneurysm side, Fisher scores and the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) Grading System for Subarachnoid Hemorrhage scores for patients who had a ruptured aneurysm. We assessed whether or not venous drainage was associated with rupture of the aneurysm and if venous dominance was a predisposing factor for aneurysm formation like location, size, and hypertension. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant association between venous dominance and side of aneurysm; and also a statistically significant association between venous dominance and rupture. There was a positive correlation between hypertension and rupture. The most common aneurysm location was the anterior communicating artery, followed by the middle cerebral artery. CONCLUSION: Brain venous drainage dominance may be a predisposing factor for aneurysm formation and it can be predictive for rupture

Can neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio be a predictor of cerebral vasospasm in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage?

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and development of vasospasm in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Materials and Methods The study was performed by retrospectively analyzing the data of 170 aneurysmal SAH patients who admitted to the intensive care unit of our hospital between 2011 and 2017. We investigated the ability of NLR values calculated from the blood samples taken at the time of admission to predict for vasospasm. Results Thirty-five percent of the patients developed vasospasm. NLR values were associated with the development of vasospasm (OR 1.15; 95% confidence interval, 1.09-1.22; p [Med-Science 2018; 7(4.000): 766-8

The importance of craniovertebral and cervicomedullary angles in cervicogenic headache

PURPOSE Many studies have indicated that cervicogenic headache may originate from the cervical structures innervated by the upper cervical spinal nerves. To date, no study has investigated whether narrowing of the craniovertebral angle (CVA) or cervicomedullary angle (CMA) affects the three upper cervical spinal nerves. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of CVA and/or CMA narrowing on the occurrence of cervicogenic headache. MATERIALS AND METHODS Two hundred and five patients diagnosed with cervicogenic headache were included in the study. The pain scores of patients were determined using a visual analog scale. The nonheadache control group consisted of 40 volunteers. CVA and CMA values were measured on sagittal T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), on two occasions by two radiologists. Angle values and categorized pain scores were compared statistically between the groups. RESULTS Intraobserver and interobserver agreement was over 97% for all measurements. Pain scores increased with decreasing CVA and CMA values. Mean angle values were significantly different among the pain categories (P < 0.001). The pain score was negatively correlated with CMA (Spearman correlation coefficient, r(s), -0.676; P < 0.001) and CVA values (r(s), -0.725; P < 0.001). CONCLUSION CVA or CMA narrowing affects the occurrence of cervicogenic headache. There is an inverse relationship between the angle values and pain scores

Posttraumatic intratumoural haemorrhage: an unusual presentation of spinal ependymoma

Ependymomas presenting with intratumoural and/or subarachnoid haemorrhages are seen rarely. These haemorrhages are mostly due to anticoagulation, epidural analgesia or pregnancy. A 62-year-old male farmer with cauda equina syndrome after a work-related trauma is presented. He was admitted to our hospital with paraparesis, faecal incontinance and sensory loss below the level of the lumbar-2 dermatome. Magnetic resonance imaging of the spine displayed an intradural mass lesion at the level of the first lumbar vertebrae. The lesion was excised totally via dorsal midline approach. Histopathologic examination revealed grade-3 ependymoma with intratumoural haemorrhage. The patient’s symptoms were relieved completely on postoperative day 7. The patient was given information about periodical examination for recurrence and discharged on the third postoperative week. Asymptomatic spinal lesions should be considered for operation whenever detected because of unpredicted complications