Never say never again: A bone graft infection due to a hornet sting, thirty-nine years after cranioplasty.

Background: Cranioplasty (CP) is a widespread surgical procedure aimed to restore skull integrity and physiological cerebral hemodynamics, to improve neurological functions and to protect the underlying brain after a life-saving decompressive craniectomy (DC). Nevertheless, CP is still burdened by surgical complications, among which early or late graft infections are the most common outcome-threatening ones.

Case Description: We report the case of 48-year-old man admitted to our neurosurgical unit because of a painful right frontal swelling and 1-week purulent discharge from a cutaneous fistula.

Barriers to Early Discharge after Elective Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (BED PCI): A Single-Center Study.

Objective: To identify patient characteristics and procedural factors that may play a role in hindering same-day discharge (SDD) practices.

Background: Multiple studies have shown the safety and cost effectiveness of SDD following elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), but factors that hinder SDD practices have not been thoroughly studied.

Material And Methods: A retrospective comparative analysis of elective PCI patients who had an overnight stay (OS) (n=345) vs.

Exploring change in a group-based psychological intervention for multiple sclerosis patients.

Purpose: The study is focused on a group-based cognitive behavioral intervention aimed at promoting the quality of life and psychological well-being of multiple sclerosis patients. The study investigates how the group intervention promoted change among participants and fostered their adjustment to the illness.

Materials And Methods: The intervention involved six groups of patients (a total of 41 patients) and included four consecutive sessions and a 6-month follow-up.

Meditation training for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a randomized clinical trial.

Background And Purpose: Studies investigating psychological interventions for the promotion of well-being in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are lacking. The purpose of the current study was to examine the use of an ALS-specific mindfulness-based intervention for improving quality of life in this population.

Methods: A randomized, open-label and controlled clinical trial was conducted on the efficacy of an ALS-specific meditation programme in promoting quality of life.

Effects of Multiple Genetic Loci on Age at Onset in Frontotemporal Dementia.

In frontotemporal dementia (FTD), age at disease onset (AAO) is unpredictable in both early and late-onset cases; AAO variability is found even in autosomal dominant FTD. The present study was aimed at identifying genetic modifiers modulating AAO in a large cohort of Italian FTD patients. We conducted an association analysis on 411 FTD patients, belonging to 7 Italian Centers, and for whom AAO was available.

EMG-Guided Percutaneous Placement of Cement-Augmented Pedicle Screws for Osteoporotic Thoracolumbar Burst Fractures.

Background: Percutaneous techniques have increasingly gained popularity in recent years. The application of technological innovation, including neuromonitoring techniques, has the potential to increase the safety and efficacy of these procedures.

Methods: Thirty patients suffering from osteoporotic dorsolumbar burst fracture were prospectively enrolled in this study.

Reconstruction of Vertebral Body After Radiofrequency Ablation and Augmentation in Dorsolumbar Metastatic Vertebral Fracture: Analysis of Clinical and Radiological Outcome in a Clinical Series of 18 Patients.

Background: Painful spinal metastases usually occur in malignant neoplastic disease. Treatment for bone metastases has been largely conservative, and it includes the use of high doses of analgesics, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and bisphosphonates; however, results are sometimes transient and ineffective. In the presence of neurological involvement a surgical strategy should be considered.

Restoring Neurological Physiology: The Innovative Role of High-Energy MR-Guided Focused Ultrasound (HIMRgFUS). Preliminary Data from a New Method of Lesioning Surgery.

Background: Tremor is a disabling condition, common to several neurodegenerative diseases. Lesioning procedures and deep brain stimulation, respectively, of the ventralis intermedius nucleus for intentional tremor, and of the subthalamic nucleus for parkinsonian resting tremor, have been introduced in clinical practice for patients refractory to medical treatment. The combination of high-energy focused ultrasound (HIFUS) with sophisticated magnetic resonance (MR) instrumentation, together with accurate knowledge of the stereotactic brain coordinates, represents a revolution in neuromodulation.

Spinal Cord Stimulation: An Alternative Concept of Rehabilitation?

Background: Chronic low back and leg pain is a disabling condition, affecting, in most cases, older patients with congenital or acquired spinal stenosis or patients with failed back surgery syndrome. Spinal cord stimulation has been introduced as an effective therapeutic option for those patients who have previously been operated without significant clinical benefits, or for all those patients who are ineligible for traditional surgery.

Methods: We report our experience with ten patients treated with spinal cord stimulation plus medication and physical therapy between November 2014 and September 2015.

Surgical nuances on the treatment of giant dumbbell cervical spine schwannomas: description of a challenging case and review of the literature.

We report a case of a giant intra and extradural cervical schwannoma in a patient affected by a severe myelo-radiculopathy. Clinical features, diagnosis and the issues concerning the surgical management of this benign tumor are discussed. We also review similar cases previously reported in the literature.

MET tyrosine kinase receptor expression and amplification as prognostic biomarkers of survival in gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Background: MET gene amplification and Met protein overexpression may be associated with a poor prognosis. The MET/Met status is typically determined with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC), respectively. Targeted proteomics uses mass spectrometry-based selected reaction monitoring (SRM) to accurately quantitate Met expression.

Germline polymorphisms as biomarkers of tumor response in colorectal cancer patients treated with anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Studies of germline polymorphisms as predictors of tumor response to anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibody agents in metastatic colorectal cancer have reported inconsistent results. We performed a systematic review of studies from 1990 to September 2015, followed by random-effects meta-analyses for polymorphisms examined in at least three studies. Of 87 studies, 40 passed the criteria for systematic review and 23 for meta-analysis.

Plastic restriction of HIV-1 replication in human macrophages derived from M1/M2 polarized monocytes.

M1/M2 cytokine-dependent polarization of primary human MDMs has been shown to contain CCR5-dependent (R5) HIV-1 replication. In this study, a similar effect was achieved when monocytes were first polarized toward M1 or M2 and were infected 7 d after their differentiation into MDMs, regardless of whether the cytokines were removed 18 h after cell stimulation or were left in culture. Unlike polarized MDMs, no significant down-regulation of CD4 from the cell surface was observed in MDMs derived from M1/M2-polarized monocytes.

Topoisomerase 1 Promoter Variants and Benefit from Irinotecan in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Patients.

Objective: Topoisomerase 1 (topo-1) is an important target for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the correlation between topo-1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and clinical outcome in metastatic CRC (mCRC) patients.

Methods: With the use of specific software (PROMO 3.

Improving the quality of life and psychological well-being of recently diagnosed multiple sclerosis patients: preliminary evaluation of a group-based cognitive behavioral intervention.

Purpose: The study evaluated a group-based cognitive behavioral intervention aimed at promoting the quality of life and the psychological well-being of recently diagnosed multiple sclerosis (MS) patients (up to 3 years since the diagnosis).

Method: The study involved 85 patients [59% women; mean age 37, SD = 12.3; 94% with relapsing-remitting MS; Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) between 1 and 4].

Immuno-Pharmacological Targeting of Virus-Containing Compartments in HIV-1-Infected Macrophages.

In addition to CD4 T lymphocytes, HIV-1 infects tissue macrophages that can actively accumulate infectious virions in vacuolar subcellular structures mostly connected to the plasma membrane and recently termed virus-containing compartments (VCCs). The VCC-associated HIV-1 reservoir of infected macrophages can be either increased or depleted by immunologic and pharmacologic agents, at least in vitro, thus suggesting that these factors (or related molecules) could be effective in curtailing the macrophage-associated HIV-1 reservoir in infected individuals receiving combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). Here we review evidence on the pathogenic role of tissue macrophages as long-term viral reservoirs in vivo and upon in vitro infection with a particular emphasis on the immuno-pharmacological modulation of VCCs.

Glycolysis gene expression analysis and selective metabolic advantage in the clinical progression of colorectal cancer.

Production of lactate even in the presence of sufficient levels of oxygen (aerobic glycolysis) seems the prevalent energy metabolism pathway in cancer cells. The analysis of altered expression of effectors causing redirection of glucose metabolism would help to characterize this phenomenon with possible therapeutic implications. We analyzed mRNA expression of the key enzymes involved in aerobic glycolysis in normal mucosa (NM), primary tumor (PT) and liver metastasis (LM) of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients (pts) who underwent primary tumor surgery and liver metastasectomy.

Aulogous fibrin sealant (Vivostat(®)) in the neurosurgical practice: Part II: Vertebro-spinal procedures.

Background: Epidural hematomas, cerebrospinal fluid fistula, and spinal infections are challenging postoperative complications following vertebro-spinal procedures. We report our preliminary results using autologous fibrin sealant as both fibrin glue and a hemostatic during these operations.

Methods: Prospectively, between January 2013 and March 2015, 68 patients received an autologous fibrin sealant prepared with the Vivostat(®) system applied epidurally to provide hemostasis and to seal the dura.

Gastrointestinal Symptoms of Patients with Fabry Disease.

In order to characterize gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms of 50 patients with Fabry disease (FD) (22 M; age range: 4-70 y; 35 adults and 15 children), validated questionnaires of GI symptoms were used to diagnose the functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) of the patients with GI symptoms (33/50 (66%); 25/35 adults and 8/15 children) according to Rome III criteria. In 16/25 of these adults and 2/8 of these children, the symptoms mimicked FGID. The adult subgroup included patients with unspecified functional bowel disorder (n = 9), functional bloating (n = 7), and IBS (n = 5), and the child subgroup included patients with abdominal migraine (n = 1) and IBS (n = 1).

Delayed chronic intracranial subdural hematoma complicating resection of a tanycytic thoracic ependymoma.

Background: To demonstrate that the diagnosis of an intracranial subdural hematoma should be considered for patients presenting with acute or delayed symptoms of intracranial pathology following resection of a spinal tumor.

Case Description: We present a case of a 57-year-old woman found to have a chronic subdural hematoma 1 month following resection of a thoracic extramedullary ependymoma. Evacuation of the hematoma through a burr hole relieved the presenting symptoms and signs.