1/6. Trigeminocardiac reflex: a unique case of recurrent asystole during bilateral trigeminal sensory root rhizotomy.BACKGROUND: The trigeminocardiac reflex is the sudden-onset of dysrhythmia and hypotension during manipulation of any of the branches of the trigeminal nerve. The trigeminal nerve and cardioinhibitory vagus nerve constitute the afferent and efferent pathways in the reflex arc. The trigeminocardiac reflex has been reported to occur during craniofacial surgery, balloon-compression rhizolysis of the trigeminal ganglion, and tumour resection in the cerebellopontine angle. PATIENT & METHOD: A 2-year-old male patient with haemangioma near the sella turcica underwent rhizotomies of both sides of the dorsal sensory roots, of the trigeminal nerves for palliation of intractable trigeminal pain. RESULTS: In this report, we experienced two unexpected episodes of asystole after transection of the sensory roots of the trigeminal nerves. CONCLUSION: Sectioning of the intracranial dorsal sensory root of the trigeminal nerve provides clear evidence of the central role of the trigeminal nerve as the afferent pathway of the trigeminocardiac reflex arc.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/6. Anterior transpetrosal approach for pontine cavernous angioma--case report.A 58-year-old male patient presented with headache and unsteady gait. magnetic resonance imaging revealed hemorrhage from a pontine cavernous angioma. The patient experienced stepwise aggravation of symptoms due to repeated hemorrhages. We decided to surgically remove the pontine cavernous angioma through an anterior transpetrosal approach, since the angioma and hematoma were located near the ventrolateral surface of the pons. The brain stem was incised at a site caudal to the trigeminal nerve and the hematoma and angioma were totally removed. No additional neurological deficits were observed following surgery. brain stem cavernous angiomas are usually removed via a trans-fourth ventricle or lateral suboccipital approach. However, these approaches may not be appropriate if the angioma is located ventrally to the pons. We propose that the anterior transpetrosal approach is the method of choice for ventrally located pontine cavernous angioma.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/6. Posterior fossa ependymoma with intense but transient disseminated enhancement but not metastasis.We report a pediatric patient with a posterior fossa ependymoma in whom the second of two magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans obtained preoperatively within a 10-day span showed intense but transient disseminated enhancement. However, following posterior fossa craniotomy for near total tumor resection, neither three MRI exams nor two craniospinal fluid samplings revealed evidence of disseminated disease. Concerned that the one MRI with disseminated enhancement indicated an elevated risk of leptomeningeal metastasis, we initiated craniospinal irradiation. However, we terminated this treatment after realizing that the bulk of the clinical evidence refuted the diagnosis of metastatic disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/6. MRI findings in a case of a superficial siderosis associated with an ependymoma.We present the imaging findings of superficial siderosis of the central nervous system associated with an ependymoma of the posterior fossa in a patient who presented with progressive bilateral sensorineural hearing loss and cerebellar ataxia. The ependymoma was a homogeneous well-defined mass of the fourth ventricle without hydrocephalus. Secondary siderosis due to chronic bleeding from the ependymoma appeared as linear hypointensity delineating the surface of the cortex, thin and subtle on spin-echo T2-weighted images, thick and obvious on gradient-echo T2-weighted images.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/6. Unusual localization of a choroid plexus papilloma in a 4-year-old female.choroid plexus papillomas are rare tumors that are confined to areas in which the choroid plexus is normally located. In children, choroid plexus papillomas are predominantly located in the lateral ventricles. Clinically they present with signs of raised intracranial pressure, such as vomiting and increasing head size. Here we report on the clinical, radiologic, and histologic findings of a 4-year-old female who was found to have a tumor in the posterior fossa that had all the histologic hallmarks of a choroid plexus papilloma. This tumor did not originate from the roof of the fourth ventricle as expected but from the ependymal lining covering the median rostral medulla near the pontomedullary junction, a location that so far has not been reported.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/6. Genetic profiling of a distant second glioblastoma multiforme after radiotherapy: recurrence or second primary tumor?OBJECT: In nearly all patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) a local recurrence develops within a short period of time. In this paper the authors describe two patients in whom a second GBM developed after a relatively long time interval at a site remote from the primary tumor. The genetic profiles of the tumors were compared to discriminate between distant recurrence and a second primary tumor. methods: Both patients harboring a supratentorial GBM were treated with surgery and local high-dose radiotherapy. Local control of the disease at the primary tumor site was achieved. Within 2 years, a second GBM developed in both patients, not only outside the previously irradiated target areas but infratentorially in one patient and in the opposite hemisphere in the other. The tumors were examined for the presence of several genetic alterations that are frequently found in GBMs--a loss of heterozygosity at chromosome regions 1p36, 10pl5, 19q13, and 22q13, and at the CDKN2A, PTEN, DMBT1, and TP53 gene regions; a TP53 mutation; and EGFR amplification. In the first patient, genetic profiling revealed that the primary tumor had an allelic imbalance for markers in several chromosome regions for which the second tumor displayed a complete loss. In the second patient, genetic profiling demonstrated the presence of genetic changes in the second tumor that were identical with and additional to those found in the primary tumor. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the similarities between the genetic profiles of the primary and the second tumors in these patients, the authors decided that in each case the second distant GBM was a distant recurrence rather than a second independent primary tumor.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = near (Clic here for more details about this article) |