Effect of Sphenoid Sinus Pneumatization on the Surgical Windows for Extended Endoscopic Endonasal Transsphenoidal Surgery.

Background: Little is known on the impact of the pattern and extent of pneumatization of the sphenoid sinus (SS) on the dimensions of the surgical windows used in extended endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal approaches. We therefore investigated whether the distances between the 2 optic canals and between the paired paraclival carotid arteries are influenced by the pattern and extent of pneumatization of the SS.

Methods: One hundred high-resolution computed tomography scans from 47 adult female and 53 adult male patients were analyzed.

Lumbar microendoscopic discectomy: surgical technique and nuances.

Background: Lumbar microendoscopic discectomy (MED) is a minimally invasive transmuscular approach that combines standard lumbar microsurgical techniques with endoscopy. MED advantages include reduced tissue trauma, direct visualization of the nerve root and disc disease, and allowing bony decompression in cases with spinal or lateral recess stenosis.

Methods: Operative charts and videos of patients undergoing MED were retrieved from our database and reviewed.

Endoscopic biopsy of brain tumors: Does the technique matter?

Background: Endoscopic biopsy of brain tumors is an important part of the armamentarium of management of intra- and periventricular tumors that is generally considered an acceptable and, in some situations, a preferred method for tissue sampling. The diagnostic yield of the procedure has been variably reported. Technical aspects of the procedure should undoubtedly reflect on its success rate and accuracy.

Colloid cysts posterior and anterior to the foramen of Monro: Anatomical features and implications for endoscopic excision.

Background: Colloid cysts are usually located at the rostral part of the third ventricle in proximity to the foramina of Monro. Some third ventricular colloid cysts, however, attain large sizes, reach a very high distance above the roof of the third ventricle, and pose some challenges during endoscopic excision. These features led to the speculation that for such a pattern of growth to take place, the points of origin of these cysts should be at areas away from the foramina of Monro at which some anatomical "windows" exist that are devoid of compact, closely apposed forniceal structures.

Blake's pouch cyst.

Background: In 1900, Joseph Blake described a transient posterior evagination of the tela choroidea of the fourth ventricle in the normal 130-day old human embryo. He was the first to recognize and fully elucidate on the real nature of the foramen of Magendie as an aperture, which develops within a saccular expansion of the embryonic fourth ventricular cavity. The persistence of this temporary fourth ventricular outpouching into the postnatal period and its significance either as separate entity or as an entity within the Dandy-Walker continuum has over the years been one of the most controversial topics in both neurosurgical and neuroradiological literature.

John Edwin Scarff (1898-1978) and endoscopic choroid plexus coagulation: A historical vignette.

John Edwin Scarff (1898-1978) was one of the pioneers of neuroendoscopy and the head of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Columbia University in New York from 1947 to 1949. In this article, we highlight the pioneering and longstanding efforts of John E. Scarff in support of endoscopic choroid plexus coagulation.

An overview of the current surgical options for pineal region tumors.

Background: The list of pineal region tumors comprises an extensive array of pathological entities originating within one of the most complex areas of the intracranial cavity. With the exception of germ cell tumors, microsurgical excision is still nowadays the mainstay of management for most pineal region tumors.

Methods: A search of the medical literature was conducted for publications addressing surgical options for management of pineal region tumors.

Outcome evaluation of a zero-profile implant for anterior cervical diskectomy with fusion.

Aim: Supplementing anterior cervical diskectomy and fusion (ACDF) with plates enhances stabilization, increases fusion and reduces failure rates. Zero-P implant for stand-alone anterior interbody fusion procedures of the cervical spine was recently developed to avoid complications associated with anterior cervical plates. We evaluate the outcome of its use in our patients undergoing ACDF.