[Posterior spinal instrumentation image guided and assisted by neuronavigation. Experience in 120 cases].

Introduction: The authors present the results of a series of 121 cases of posterior vertebral fixation carried out from Sept 2008 to Sept 2010 using Flouro 2D-TC assisted Vector Vision o Kolibri navigator. ( Brain LAB, Feldkirchen, Germany).

Material: The sample included 68 males and 53 females.

[Posterior C1-C2 arthrodesis. Experience in transarticular and interarticular fixation in 36 patients].

Objective: The stabilization of C1-C2 segment has evolved with the appearance of several techniques from sublaminar, transarticular or interarticular fixation and over recent years with the introduction of neuronavegation systems. The aim of the study was to review patients treated in our center with transarticular and interarticualr fixation and compare the results obtained with both techniques.

Methods: Thirty six patients with C1-C2 instability that required a surgical fixation between 1995-2008 were retrostpectively analized.

[Comparison [corrected] of Chiari I malformation treatment using suboccipital craniectomy and posterior arch of C1 resection with or without dural graft].

Unlabelled: There are various surgical approaches to treat Chiari I malformation. In spite of the good clinical results that are reported with most of them, there is still controversy about the optimal treatment of this pathology.

Objective: To compare the clinical and radiological results of surgical treatment of the Chiari I malformation with suboccipital craniectomy, posterior arch of C1 resection with or without dural graft, analyzing clinical and radiological findings and describing the complications.

[Results of C1-C2 transarticular screw fixation in a series of 20 patients].

Objective: C1-C2 transarticular fixation is an increasingly used surgical method of treating atlantoaxial instability. When properly performed, it can safely provide fusion rates near 100%, but techniques of fixation in this region allow only a small margin of error. We here report the results of C1-C2 transarticular fixation in a series of 20 patients in which different procedures were selected according to the presenting disorder in each case.

[Dysphagia as the form of presentation of Forestier-Rotés disease].

We present the case of a 73-year-old patient suffering dysphagia secondary to cervical osteophytosis as the clinical presentation of Forestier-Rotés disease. Although this is a frequent disease, there are few cases of dysphagia secondary to this condition it being the initial symptom exceptional. The diagnostic methodology is commented emphasizing cervical CT scan as well as the therapeutic attitude, suggesting starting with a conservative treatment since surgery is not always successful.

[Chemonucleolysis. Peridural anesthesia versus general anesthesia].

A prospective comparative study was carried out between two anesthetic techniques for chemonucleolysis. Patients were divided into 2 groups of 50 patients each. Group A were submitted to general anesthesia and group B to epidural anesthesia with 0.

Contralateral trigeminal neuralgia as a false localizing sign in intracranial tumors.

Three cases of contralateral trigeminal neuralgia as a false localizing sign in intracranial tumors are reported. In each patient (meningioma, 2 cases; cholesteatoma, 1 case) the tumor was asymptomatic, so that intracranial tumor had not been suspected preoperatively. In all cases, tumors were large and firm.