Brain injury due to air gun shot: report of three adult cases.

Air guns (AGs) are arms that use air or another compressed gas to propel a projectile. Generally, brain injury may occur in children due to their incomplete skull development; however, the less-resistant and thin region of the skull in adults may also be penetrated by an AG shot. In this paper, we present three adult cases treated in our clinic for brain injury caused by an AG.

Microsurgical resection of supratentorial cerebral cavernomas.

Aim: More than two thirds of cerebral cavernomas are located supratentorially. The transsulcal approach without excision of the perilesional gliotic parenchyma and simple lesionectomy are keys to surgery on eloquent areas.

Material And Methods: We present 11 supratentorial cerebral cavernomas operated between 2003 and 2007 with signs of seizures in six and focal neurological deficit in four cases.

Single-stage posterolateral Corpectomy and circumferential stabilization without laminectomy in the upper thoracic spine: cadaveric study and report of three cases.

Aim: Surgical approach to the upper thoracic spine diseases is challenging since anterior interventions to this region are quite complicated with the presence of major vascular elements or important visceral and soft-tissue structures.

Material And Methods: Operative technique was performed initially on eight cadavers and then on three consecutive patients. Costotransvesectomy was performed on the left side and pediculectomy were added on the contralateral side to achieve wide visual angle during corpectomy.

Spontaneous resolution of calcified cephalhematomas of infancy: report of two cases.

Cephalhematoma (CH) is less commonly encountered problem of infancy with an incidence of 1 % however calcified CHs are seldom. The exact reason of calcification remains unclear. We report two cases of calcified CHs that developed as a complication of vacuum extraction during vaginal delivery.

Orbitocerebral injury by a knife: case report.

Orbital penetrating injuries may cause significant harm to the optic nerves and eyeball as well as to the brain and cerebral vessels. Management of orbital foreign bodies should include prompt recognition of the extent of the injury, broad-spectrum parenteral antibiotics, tetanus prophylaxis, anticonvulsant medication and early surgical intervention under direct vision to remove the foreign body and to avoid immediate and long-term complications. We report a penetrating orbital injury caused by a bread knife that extended from the orbit to the tegmental dura mater of the temporal bone.

The revised Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation System (APACHE II) is more effective than the Glasgow Coma Scale for prediction of mortality in head-injured patients with systemic trauma.

Background: The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is popular, simple, and reliable, and provides information about the level of consciousness in trauma patients. Nevertheless, the necessity of using a more complex system than GCS has been questioned recently. The revised Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation system (APACHE II) is a physiologically based system including 12 physiological variables, and it also includes GCS.

Neuroprotective effect of melatonin on experimental peripheral nerve injury: an electron microscopic and biochemical study.

Background And Study Aims: Melatonin is an important antioxidant agent with a protective role in the prevention of oxidative stress. We designed an experimental study which focused on the potential neuroprotective effect of melatonin on peripheral nerve injury.

Materials And Methods: Sciatic nerve injury was induced in the mid thigh region of 30 male Wistar rats by clip compression.

Choroid plexus papillomas in two siblings: case report.

Choroid plexus papilloma (CPP) is a rare, benign epithelial brain tumor of the nervous system seen particularly in infants. Familial cases are extremely uncommon. Some other form of malignant tumors was noted in the relatives of patients with CPPs, and some genetic defects regarding this coincidence were reported in the literature.

Lumbar epidural abscess caused by brucella species: report of two cases.

Spinal epidural abscess due to Brucella species is usually associated with spondylodiscitis. Urgent surgical decompression should be performed in cases with moderate to severe neurological deficits particularly if progressive. We report clinical features of two cases operated for lumbar epidural abscess caused by Brucella species.

Cystic olfactory schwannoma of the anterior cranial base.

Olfactory groove schwannomas are extremely uncommon and less than 30 cases are reported in the literature. We report a 21-year-old developmentally-retarded boy who experienced severe headache and aggressive behaviour for 5 months. Imaging showed a cystic mass in the subfrontal region, which was removed by craniotomy.

Cerebral leukoencephalopathy with calcifications and cysts operated for signs of increased intracranial pressure: case report.

Background: Association of leukoencephalopathy with calcifications and cysts is extremely rare. It should be differentiated from FD or bilateral striopallidodentate calcinosis and astrocytoma. Yet, there are many other clinical syndromes featuring bilateral symmetric cerebral calcifications.

Cerebral abscess caused by Nocardia nova.

Primary cerebral nocardiosis is very rare and the subgroup of the isolate has usually been defined as Nocardia asteroides. We report an unusual patient with a cerebral abscess whose cultures were typical for N. nova.

Dural sinus thrombosis following head injury: report of two cases and review of the literature.

Dural sinus thrombosis (DST) usually involves the sagittal, transverse and sigmoid sinuses and is more common in women due to pregnancy, puerperium and oral contraceptive use. Other etiologies include coagulopathies, infection and head injury. We have present two DST cases following head injury.

Delayed chiasmal herniation after transsphenoidal removal of a pituitary adenoma - case report.

We report a 41-year-old woman who experienced visual deterioration after successful removal of a pituitary adenoma. Possible mechanisms of this visual deterioration and contribution of chiasmal herniation into the sella as well as defect in the diaphragma sellae are discussed with emphasis on the regulation of medical treatment for pituitary adenomas. We conclude that medical therapy after pituitary surgery should be carefully managed together with periodic visual examinations.

Late angiographic and clinical follow-up results of 100 consecutive aneurysms treated with Onyx reconstruction: largest single-center experience.

We present the long-term clinical and angiographic follow-up results of 100 consecutive intracranial aneurysms treated with Onyx liquid embolic system (MTI, Irvine, Calif.), either alone or combined with an adjunctive stent, in a single center. A total of 100 aneurysms in 94 patients were treated with endosaccular Onyx packing.

Treatment of internal carotid artery aneurysms with a covered stent: experience in 24 patients with mid-term follow-up results.

Background And Purpose: We present our preliminary experience, including mid-term angiographic and clinical follow-up results, with an alternative technique for the endovascular treatment of intracranial aneurysms in a series of patients. This new method, previously described in anecdotal case reports, consists of endovascular deployment of an artificial vessel graft (stent graft or covered stent) in the parent vessel to exclude the intracranial aneurysm sac from circulation.

Methods: Twenty-five internal carotid artery (ICA) aneurysms in 24 patients were successfully treated by using a Jostent coronary stent graft deployed in the parent artery across the aneurysm neck.

Cerebellar abscess caused by Shewanella putrefaciens.

We report a case of cerebellar abscess secondary to chronic otitis by caused by Shewanella putrefaciens and localized in the cerebellar hemisphere, in a paediatric patient.

Rare intracranial manifestations of frontal osteomas.

Osteomas of the paranasal sinuses are usually asymptomatic. When enlarged, they could give rise to intracranial manifestations and serious complications. Osteomas most commonly affect the fronto-ethmoid sinuses.

Prognostic value of interleukin-1 beta levels after acute brain injury.

Traumatic injury to central nervous system results in the production of inflammatory cytokines via intrinsic mechanisms by neurons, astrocytes and microglia, and extrinsic mechanisms by infiltrating macrophages, lymphocytes and other leukocytes. Interleukin-1 beta is the key mediator of the acute inflammatory host response. While this response is necessary for resolution of the pathologic event, the toxic nature of many of its products can cause significant tissue damage.

Neuroprotective effects of propofol following global cerebral ischemia in rats.

Propofol has cerebral vascular and metabolic effects similar to those of barbiturates, and it is used to maintain neurosurgical anesthesia because it reduces cerebral metabolic rate, cerebral blood flow, and intracranial pressure. Although the use of propofol as a cerebral protectant during certain neurosurgical procedures has been advocated, consensus has not been reached as to a protective effect of propofol on cerebral ischemia. In this study we observed the neuroprotective effects of propofol during global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury by the use of four-vessel occlusion method in a rat model.

Surgical management of syringomyelia-Chiari complex.

Great variety exists in the indications and techniques recommended for the surgical treatment of syringomyelia-Chiari complex. More recently, magnetic resonance (MR) imaging has increased the frequency of diagnosis of this pathology and offered a unique opportunity to visualize cavities inside the spinal cord as well as their relationship to the cranio-cervical junction. This report presents 18 consecutive adult symptomatic syringomyelia patients with Chiari malformation who underwent foramen magnum decompression and syringosubarachnoid shunting.

Craniocervical neurenteric cyst without associated abnormalities.

Spinal neurenteric (NE) cyst is an uncommon congenital cyst and frequently found in the cervical region. The clinical symptoms associated with this entity depend on the site of the lesion and are not typical for all such cysts. A definitive diagnosis can only be made by biopsy and histological examination.

Orbital hydatid cysts: report of four cases.

Hydatid cysts of central nervous system are rare and comprise only 2% to 3% of all hydatid cysts reported. Orbital localization is very uncommon and has been reported less than 1% of all hydatid diseases. The primary treatment of hydatid disease is surgical.