Intramedullary Spinal Cord Abscess Management: Case Series, Operative Video, and Systematic Review.

Background: Intramedullary spinal cord abscess (ISCA) is an extremely rare disease, which has had fewer than 250 reported cases since its initial description in 1830. The condition is limited to level V evidence, limiting the ability for surgeons to characterize and treat it.

Objective: To report the cases of 2 patients with ISCA and their surgical management: a 59-year-old woman who presented with progressive right hemiparesis and a 69-old man who presented with acute gait instability and significant bilateral shoulder pain.

Educational impact of early COVID-19 operating room restrictions on neurosurgery resident training in the United States: A multicenter study.

Background: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has caused unprecedented suspensions of neurosurgical elective surgeries, a large proportion of which involve spine procedures. The goal of this study is to report granular data on the impact of early COVID-19 pandemic operating room restrictions upon neurosurgical case volume in academic institutions, with attention to its secondary impact upon neurosurgery resident training. This is the first multicenter quantitative study examining these early effects upon neurosurgery residents caseloads.

Bullet retrieval from the cauda equina after penetrating spinal injury: A case report and review of the literature.

Background: When gunshot injuries occur to the spine, bullet fragments may be retained within the spinal canal. Indications for bullet removal include incomplete spinal cord injury, progressive loss of neurologic function including injury to the cauda equina, and dural leaks with impending risk of meningitis.

Case Description: Here, we present a 34-year-old male with a missile penetrating spinal injury to the cauda equina.

Follow-up Brain Imaging Within 30 Days of Gamma-Knife Surgery for New Symptoms: Retrospective Analysis.

Objective: Gamma Knife surgery is a complementary procedure to open microsurgery for several indications. However, posttreatment symptomatic complaints are common and often result in short-term follow-up imaging. Here we evaluate the efficacy of repeat brain imaging within 30 days of a Gamma Knife procedure by analyzing the frequency with which that imaging reveals addressable pathology.

Resection of a large presacral schwannoma from an all-posterior trans-sacral approach.

Background: Presacral schwannomas vary greatly in size, and symptomatology. Resections may utilize anterior, posterior, or combined 360-degree approaches.

Case Description: A 67-year-old female presented with a progressively enlarging presacral schwannoma originating from the S1 nerve root.

Dorsal migration of lumbar disc fragments causing cauda equina syndromes: A three case series and literature review.

Background: Dorsal migration of an intervertebral lumbar disc fragment is exceedingly rare and may result in spinal cord or cauda equina compression. Radiologically, these lesions may be misdiagnosed as extradural masses or epidural hematomas.

Case Description: We present three cases involving dorsal migration of sequestered lumbar disc fragments resulting in cauda equina syndromes.

Utilizing vertebral body autograft for anterior cervical corpectomy/fusion.

Background: There are numerous ways to reconstruct cervical vertebral bodies and achieve arthrodesis following anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion (ACF). However, device and donor site complications abound. Here, we describe a novel technique for performing ACF using the vertebral body itself as a structural autograft.

Tandem Thoracic Spinal Cord Lesions of Differing Pathologies: Concurrent Metastatic Lung Adenocarcinoma Lesion in Close Proximity to a Intradural Meningioma.

Simultaneously having two pathologically distinct neoplastic lesions causing critical spinal stenosis is exceedingly rare. When such lesions are near one another but occupy different spinal compartments, significant challenges arise. We present the case of a patient with metastatic non-small cell carcinoma to the thoracic spine and an intradural meningioma occurring two spinal segments from each other.

Rapid Development of Spinal Epidural Lipomatosis after Treatment of Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer with Second-Generation Androgen Receptor Antagonists.

Background: Previous studies have described the association of spinal epidural lipomatosis with several conditions including chronic steroid therapy, Cushing's syndrome, obesity, Paget disease, and hypothyroidism. We present a report of rapid development of spinal epidural lipomatosis after treatment with second-generation anti-androgen therapy, a new strategy for treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer that has been increasingly employed in the past few years. A comprehensive discussion of the underlying molecular networks involving androgen receptor blockage and adipocyte differentiation, as well as the clinical implications of such a phenomenon, are provided.

Rapid-Onset Thoracic Myelopathy due to an Epidural Sarcoid-Like Lesion in a Pediatric Patient.

Background: Isolated intraspinal neurosarcoidosis is a rare clinical entity, with most reports describing intramedullary involvement in adults.

Case Description: We detail the case of a 9-year-old girl with rapid-onset compressive myelopathy secondary to a thoracic epidural lesion. Although pathologic diagnosis was challenging, a presumptive diagnosis of isolated extradural neurosarcoidosis was made in light of the patient's investigations and dramatic response to corticosteroids.

Newly Diagnosed Sellar Tumors in Patients with Cancer: A Diagnostic Challenge and Management Dilemma.

Background: The use of combined positron emission tomography/computed tomography for staging in patients with cancer and the widespread use of magnetic resonance imaging has led to increased detection of incidental sellar masses. The imaging findings can be suggestive of a benign pituitary tumor, but metastasis can never be completely ruled out with noninvasive work-up. Appropriate diagnosis of sellar masses is critical, as the treatment paradigm might change in the presence of a pituitary metastasis.

Anatomical nuances of the internal carotid artery in relation to the quadrangular space.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the anatomical variations of the internal carotid artery (ICA) in relation to the quadrangular space (QS) and to propose a classification system based on the results. METHODS A total of 44 human cadaveric specimens were dissected endonasally under direct endoscopic visualization. During the dissection, the anatomical variations of the ICA and their relationship with the QS were noted.

Osteoblastomas of the spine: a comprehensive review.

Osteoblastomas are primary bone tumors with an affinity for the spine. They typically involve the posterior elements, although extension through the pedicles into the vertebral body is not uncommon. Histologically, they are usually indistinguishable from osteoid osteomas.

Successful outcome after endovascular thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke with basis on perfusion-diffusion mismatch after 24 h of symptoms onset.

Background: Although intravenous thrombolysis is the Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) within 3 h, combined intravenous and intra-arterial thrombolysis with endovascular techniques may be able to extend this traditional time window.

Case Description: We present the clinical evolution of a 45-year-old male presenting with acute left hemiparesis. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a small diffusion restriction at the right basal ganglia with perfusion compromise in the entire right middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory.

Retropharyngeal abscess with secondary osteomyelitis and epidural abscess: proposed pathophysiological mechanism of an underrecognized complication of unstable craniocervical injuries: case report.

Because of the proximity of the oropharynx (a naturally contaminated region) to the spinal structures of the craniocervical junction, it is possible that small mucosal lacerations in the oropharynx caused by unstable traumatic craniocervical injuries may become contaminated and lead to secondary infection and osteomyelitis. In this report, the authors describe the case of a previously healthy and immunocompetent patient who developed a large retropharyngeal abscess with spinal osteomyelitis after a high-energy craniocervical injury. This unusual report of osteomyelitis with a delayed presentation after a high-energy traumatic injury of the craniocervical junction highlights the possibility of direct injury to a specific area in the oropharyngeal mucosa adjacent to the osteoligamentous structures of the craniocervical junction, an overall underrecognized complication of unstable craniocervical injuries.

Benign extracerebral fluid collection in infancy as a risk factor for the development of de novo intracranial arachnoid cysts.

Object: Intracranial arachnoid cysts are a relatively common benign intracranial pathology, accounting for as many as 0.75%-1% of nontraumatic CNS lesions. Although it has already been demonstrated that rupture of arachnoid cysts may lead to subdural hematomas/hygromas, no study to date has investigated benign extracerebral collection in infancy as a possible predisposing factor for further development of arachnoid cysts.

Addressing the siphoning effect in new shunt designs by decoupling the activation pressure and the pressure gradient across the valve.

Object: Although several improvements have been observed in the past few years in shunt technology, currently available systems still present several associated problems. Among these, overdrainage along with its complications remains one of the great challenges for new shunt designs. To address the so-called siphoning effect, the authors provide a practical example of how it is possible to decouple the activation pressure and the pressure gradient across the valve through a 3-key component system.

Design and benchmark testing of a bicorporal pump for the treatment of normal-pressure hydrocephalus and idiopathic intracranial hypertension.

Object: Addressing overdrainage and its associated complications is still one of the greatest challenges for future shunt designs for normal-pressure hydrocephalus and idiopathic intracranial hypertension. Nevertheless, as evidenced by tap test procedures, a small amount of CSF drainage seems to be enough to relieve patients' symptoms in most cases and, therefore, in opposition to other types of hydrocephalus, continuous CSF drainage may not be absolutely warranted. In such a clinical scenario, intermittent controlled drainage of a small amount of CSF during specific periods of the day through a 2-system pump may provide several advantages over continuous drainage of current single-system shunts.

Performance analysis of the protective effects of bicycle helmets during impact and crush tests in pediatric skull models.

Object: Bicycle accidents are a very important cause of clinically important traumatic brain injury (TBI) in children. One factor that has been shown to mitigate the severity of lesions associated with TBI in such scenarios is the proper use of a helmet. The object of this study was to test and evaluate the protection afforded by a children's bicycle helmet to human cadaver skulls with a child's anthropometry in both "impact" and "crushing" situations.

Pathophysiology of regression of synovial cysts of the lumbar spine: the 'anti-inflammatory hypothesis'.

The term 'synovial cysts' of the lumbar spine refers to cysts that arise from the zygapophyseal joint capsule of the lumbar spine. Although several cases of regression of lumbar spine synovial cysts after oral anti-inflammatory therapy as well as local steroid injection have already been reported in the literature, no study up to now has addressed the role of 'inflammation suppression' in the regression of such lesions. In fact most of the previous studies have regarded 'spontaneous rupture' as well as 'instability resolution' as the most probable explanations for such phenomenon.

Cerebral melanoma metastases: a critical review on diagnostic methods and therapeutic options.

Malignant melanoma represents the third most common cause for cerebral metastases after breast and lung cancer. Central nervous system (CNS) metastases occur in 10 to 40% of patients with melanoma. Most of the symptoms of CNS melanoma metastases are unspecific and depend on localization of the lesion.