[The role of surgery in comprehensive treatment of spinal neoplasms].

Basing on clinical experience of 212 surgically treated spinal tumours the authors present the principal problems in surgical treatment of neoplasmatic disease of the spine. The essential aim of surgical treatment is the tendency to the radical removal of the tumour and, in the same time, to achieve a good stabilization of the spine. The best method of stabilization of the spine is internal stabilization, transpedicular and interbody.

[Peripheral nerve tumors: management tactics].

29 cases of the peripheral nerve tumours treated in the Department of Neurosurgery Military Medical Academy in Lódź between 1971 and 1993 are presented. The clinical symptoms, diagnostic methods, methods of operation and results are discussed. The differences are stressed, related to histological types of tumours.

[Late results of the surgical treatment of spondylolisthesis complicated by injury of the cauda equina].

In 1971-1985 surgical treatment was carried out of 29 patients in the Neurosurgery Department WAM in Lódź and 5 in the Rehabilitation Centre in Konstancin for spondylolisthesis complicated with signs of cauda equina damage. In the surgical treatment the technique used was that of a combination of neurosurgical approach (full decompression of the nervous elements in the vertebral canal by laminectomy with foraminectomy or facetectomy, removal of protruding discs and osteophytes and parts of the vertebral bodies narrowing the vertebral canal), and orthopaedic procedures (spondylodesis between vertebral bodies posterior spondylodesis and a combination of both techniques). In one case spring alloplasty was done and in one case Harrington's rods were used.

[Injury of the deep branch of the ulnar nerve].

The authors report the clinical material from the Department of Neurosurgery, WAM in Lódź from the last 11 years including cases of damage to the deep branch of the ulnar nerve. In view of the importance of this branch for the function of the hand, damage to it requires very careful surgical management with autogenous graft. Sometimes this is technically difficult in view of the topographic conditions in this area.