Shorter vs. standard-duration antibiotic therapy for nocardiosis: a multi-center retrospective cohort study.

Purpose: The prolonged treatment recommended for nocardiosis does not rely on strong evidence. Consequently, some clinicians opt shorter therapy in certain circumstances. We assessed the effectiveness of shorter therapy.

Soluble PD-L1 reprograms blood monocytes to prevent cerebral edema and facilitate recovery after ischemic stroke.

Acute cerebral ischemia triggers a profound inflammatory response. While macrophages polarized to an M2-like phenotype clear debris and facilitate tissue repair, aberrant or prolonged macrophage activation is counterproductive to recovery. The inhibitory immune checkpoint Programmed Cell Death Protein 1 (PD-1) is upregulated on macrophage precursors (monocytes) in the blood after acute cerebrovascular injury.

Neurological event prediction for patients with symptomatic cerebral cavernous malformation: the BLED2 score.

Objective: Retrospective patient cohort studies have identified risk factors associated with recurrent focal neurological events in patients with symptomatic cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs). Using a prospectively maintained database of patients with CCMs, this study identified key risk factors for recurrent neurological events in patients with symptomatic CCM. A simple scoring system and risk stratification calculator was then created to predict future neurological events in patients with symptomatic CCMs.

Minimally Invasive Intracerebral Hematoma Evacuation Using a Novel Cost-Effective Tubular Retractor: Single-Center Experience.

Background: Spontaneous intracerebral hematoma (ICH) is a common disease with a dismal overall prognosis. Recent development of minimally invasive ICH evacuation techniques has shown promising results. Commercially available tubular retractors are commonly used for minimally invasive ICH evacuation yet are globally unavailable.

Fulminant presentation of a SMARCB1-deficient, anterior cranial fossa tumor in adult.

Background: Malignant atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT) usually develops in children. ATRTs are rare in adults, with only one case in the literature describing involvement of the anterior skull base. These primary intracranial tumors are characterized molecularly as SMARCB1 (INI1) deficient.