Perioperative dual antiplatelet therapy for patients undergoing spine surgery soon after drug eluting stent placement.

Background: Performing emergent spinal surgery within 6 months of percutaneous placement of drug-eluting coronary stent (DES) is complex. The risks of spinal bleeding in a "closed space" must be compared with the risks of stent thrombosis or major cardiac event from dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) interruption.

Methods: Eighty relevant English language papers published in PubMed were reviewed in detail.

Postoperative Admission of Adult Craniotomy Patients to the Neuroscience Ward Reduces Length of Stay and Cost.

Background: The neurointensive care unit (NICU) has traditionally been the default recovery unit after elective craniotomies.

Objective: To assess whether admitting adult patients without significant comorbidities to the neuroscience ward (NW) instead of NICU for recovery resulted in similar clinical outcome while reducing length of stay (LOS) and hospitalization cost.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and cost data of adult patients undergoing supratentorial craniotomy at a university hospital within a 5-yr period who had a LOS less than 7 d.

Novel tonometer device distinguishes brain stiffness in epilepsy surgery.

Complete surgical resection of abnormal brain tissue is the most important predictor of seizure freedom following surgery for cortical dysplasia. While lesional tissue is often visually indiscernible from normal brain, anecdotally, it is subjectively stiffer. We report the first experience of the use of a digital tonometer to understand the biomechanical properties of epilepsy tissue and to guide the conduct of epilepsy surgery.

Effect of Gene Mutation on Seizures in Surgery for Tuberous Sclerosis Complex.

Background: Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a rare genetic disorder that commonly leads to drug-resistant epilepsy in affected patients. This study aimed to determine whether the underlying genetic mutation (TSC1 vs. TSC2) predicts seizure outcomes following surgical treatments for epilepsy.

Patient Safety Analysis in Radiation Burden of Head Computed Tomography Imaging in 1185 Neurosurgical Inpatients.

Objective: We performed a retrospective analysis in a cohort of 1185 patients at our institution who were identified as undergoing ≥1 head computed tomography (CT) examinations during their inpatient stay on the neurosurgery service, to quantify the number, type, and associated radiation burden of head CT procedures performed by the neurosurgery service.

Methods: CT procedure records and radiology reports were obtained via database search and directly validated against records retrieved from manual chart review. Next, dosimetry data from the head CT procedures were extracted via automated text mining of electronic radiology reports.

Quantitative Analysis of Neural Foramina in the Lumbar Spine: An Imaging Informatics and Machine Learning Study.

Purpose: To use machine learning tools and leverage big data informatics to statistically model the variation in the area of lumbar neural foramina in a large asymptomatic population.

Materials And Methods: By using an electronic health record and imaging archive, lumbar MRI studies in 645 male (mean age, 50.07 years) and 511 female (mean age, 48.

Neuromodulation for substance addiction in human subjects: A review.

Substance abuse is one of the most prevalent and costly health problems in the world today. Standard medical therapy is often not curative, and relapse is common. Research over the past several decades on the neural underpinnings of addiction has implicated a network of structures within the brain shown to be altered in patients with substance abuse.

Autonomous Trajectory Planning for External Ventricular Drain Placement.

Background: External ventricular drain (EVD) placement is the most frequently performed neurosurgical procedure for management of various conditions including hydrocephalus, traumatic brain injury, and stroke. State-of-the-art computational pattern recognition techniques could improve the safety and accuracy of EVD placement. Placement of the Kocher's point EVD is the most common neurosurgical procedure which is often performed in urgent conditions.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy: A systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis of real-world evidence.

Objective: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of real-world evidence for the use of low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy.

Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, Scopus, Medline, and clinicaltrials.gov for all relevant articles.

Current and Expected Advances in Deep Brain Stimulation for Movement Disorders.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has become an established treatment for medically refractory movement disorders including Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, and dystonia. The field of DBS continues to evolve with advances in patient selection, target identification, electrode and pulse generator technology, and the development of more effective stimulation paradigms such as closed-loop stimulation. Furthermore, as the safety and efficacy of DBS improves through better hardware design and deeper understanding of its mechanisms of action, the indications for DBS will continue to expand to cover a wider range of disorders.

Prospective and retrospective study of videoconference telemedicine follow-up after elective neurosurgery: results of a pilot program.

Existing literature suggests that use of telemedicine during postoperative appointments can increase access to care and is valued by patients and providers alike. While research examining the clinical equivalency of telemedicine visits for postoperative care has been growing, few studies have reported on telemedicine follow-up after neurosurgery. This study examined if a videoconferencing visit could substitute for an in-person clinic visit for elective neurosurgical cases in the USA.

In-hospital weekend outcomes in patients diagnosed with bleeding gastroduodenal angiodysplasia: a population-based study, 2000 to 2011.

Background And Aims: GI angiodysplastic (GIAD) lesions are an important cause of blood loss throughout the GI tract, particularly in elderly persons. The aim of this study was to determine whether mortality rates in patients with GIAD were higher for weekend compared with weekday hospital admissions.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study using the National Inpatient Sample database from 2000 to 2011 including inpatients with an International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification code for gastrointestinal GIAD (code 537.

Dementia in the Oldest-Old: A Nationwide Inpatient Sample Database Analysis.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore gender and race-specific mortality and comorbidities associated with dementia hospitalizations among the oldest-old.

Method: Using the 1999-2008 Nationwide Inpatient Sample, we identified the association between dementia mortality and hospital characteristics in the oldest-old population.

Results: The oldest-old population was mostly comprised of Whites (81.