Delayed vagal nerve compressive neuropathy following placement of vagal nerve stimulator: case report.

Vagal neuropathy causing vocal fold palsy is an uncommon complication of vagal nerve stimulator (VNS) placement. It may be associated with intraoperative nerve injury or with device stimulation. Here we present the first case of delayed, compressive vagal neuropathy associated with VNS coil placement which presented with progressive hoarseness and vocal cord paralysis.

Sudden Cardiac Death or Ventricular Arrythmia in Patients Taking Levetiracetam or Oxcarbazepine.

Background And Objectives: Levetiracetam is a widely used antiseizure medication. Recent concerns have been raised regarding the potential prolongation of the QT interval by levetiracetam and increased risk of sudden cardiac death. This could have profound implications for patient safety and for prescribing practice.

Temporal encephalocele: An epileptogenic focus confirmed by direct intracranial electroencephalography.

Several studies have suggested the epileptogenic potential of temporal encephaloceles. However, there is limited literature describing the results of intracranial EEG monitoring for patients with temporal encephaloceles. We describe a 19 year-old right-handed woman with drug-resistant epilepsy who presented with seizure onset at age 16 in the setting of a left temporal encephalocele where the seizure onset zone was confirmed to be the encephalocele via stereo EEG (sEEG).

Three-dimensional analysis of spinal deformity correction in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: comparison of two distinct techniques.

Purpose: To compare 3D postoperative deformity correction using two distinct commonly utilized techniques for the treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS).

Methods: AIS patients with major thoracic (Lenke 1-2) curves at two sites who underwent deformity correction via posterior spinal instrumented fusion using one of two distinct techniques were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were matched 1:1 between sites for Lenke type (95% Lenke 1) and follow-up time.

Obesity Is Associated With Increased Thoracic Kyphosis in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Patients and Nonscoliotic Adolescents.

Study Design: Retrospective comparative cohort study.

Objective: To compare radiographic parameters between adolescents with a greater body mass index (BMI) percentile to underweight individuals.

Summary Of Background Data: Increased BMI percentile has been associated with increased complications after surgical correction of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS).

Ten-Year Outcomes of Selective Fusions for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.

Background: Selective fusions of the structural curve remain a common treatment strategy for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, yet long-term outcomes are not well-understood. The purpose of this study was to report 10-year prospective radiographic and patient-rated outcomes of selective fusions of the main thoracic (MT) or thoracolumbar/lumbar (TL/L) curve, with particular attention to the behavior of the uninstrumented, compensatory curve.

Methods: A prospectively collected multicenter database was used to identify patients who had been followed regularly for least 10 years after a selective MT or TL/L fusion for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Extracellular superoxide dismutase (SOD3) regulates oxidative stress at the vitreoretinal interface.

Oxidative stress is a pathogenic feature in vitreoretinal disease. However, the ability of the inner retina to manage metabolic waste and oxidative stress is unknown. Proteomic analysis of antioxidants in the human vitreous, the extracellular matrix opposing the inner retina, identified superoxide dismutase-3 (SOD3) that localized to a unique matrix structure in the vitreous base and cortex.

Esophageal Perforation and Acute Bacterial Mediastinitis: Other Causes of Chest Pain That Can Be Easily Missed.

Esophageal perforation is a rare condition that is commonly missed. Male gender and alcohol use are predisposing risk factors. Most of the cases are iatrogenic or traumatic; nonetheless, spontaneous cases are not uncommon.

Potentially immunogenic proteins expressed similarly in human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells.

A major limitation of the use of cellular therapies is the loss of donor-derived cells because of immune incompatibility. While induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells offer the potential for autologous transplant therapies, questions have been raised using a mouse model that specific antigens mediate the rejection of grafts after syngeneic transplants with iPS, but not embryonic stem (ES) cells. In this study, we examined whether the human homologs of these markers, HORMAD1, ZG16, and Cyp3A, are differentially expressed in human iPS versus ES cells, as well as undifferentiated and in vitro-differentiated cells.