Corpus callosotomy for intractable epilepsy: a contemporary series of operative factors and the overall complication rate.

Objective: Corpus callosotomy is an effective treatment for atonic seizures in patients with medically refractory epilepsy. A large modern series of corpus callosotomies performed via open craniotomy highlights the importance of establishing contemporary complication rates for this operation as a benchmark for comparison with newer methodologies. The authors' study, therefore, examined operative factors and complication rates for a sample of patients who underwent open microsurgical craniotomy for corpus callosotomy to determine current metrics regarding safety and effectiveness for this procedure.

Evolving Role of Coronary CT Angiography in Coronary Angiography and Intervention: A State-of-the-Art Review.

Purpose Of Review: Despite growing evidence supporting the diagnostic utility of coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) for anatomical assessment of coronary artery disease (CAD), its is underutilized in peri-procedural planning especially in the acute setting.

Recent Findings: Incorporation of flow reserve measurement techniques into CCTA has expanded its sensitivity and specificity for obstructive disease, and continued improvement in CCTA technology permits more accurate cross-sectional plaque characterization. CCTA has the potential to constitute the mainstay of pre-procedural planning for patients with CAD, who are being considered for percutaneous coronary intervention , reducing their ad hoc nature while facilitating equipment selection and improving catheterization lab safety and throughput.

Increasing Neurosurgical Resident Research Productivity Through Cultural Shift: Choosing Carrots Over Sticks.

Introduction As part of the Milestones Initiative of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), residents in neurosurgery are expected to participate in either clinical research or basic science research. Therefore, each neurosurgical training program must offer the support and opportunity to achieve this goal. In 2012, a structured effort to promote a resident culture of research was introduced into the authors' neurosurgery residency training curriculum.

A posture subspace in primary motor cortex.

To generate movements, the brain must combine information about movement goal and body posture. Motor cortex (M1) is a key node for the convergence of these information streams. How are posture and goal information organized within M1's activity to permit the flexible generation of movement commands? To answer this question, we recorded M1 activity while monkeys performed a variety of tasks with the forearm in a range of postures.