Borderline Findings in -(2-[F]-Fluoroethyl)-l-Tyrosine PET of Patients with Suspected Glioma Relapse: Role in Clinical Practice.

One of the most common clinical indications for amino acid PET using the tracer -(2-[F]-fluoroethyl)-l-tyrosine (F-FET) is the differentiation of tumor relapse from treatment-related changes in patients with gliomas. A subset of patients may present with an uptake of F-FET close to recommended threshold values. The goal of this study was to investigate the frequency of borderline cases and the role of quantitative F-FET PET parameters in this situation.

Thrombectomy in ischemic stroke patients with alberta stroke program early computed tomography score 4-5 and 0-3: Factors associated with favorable outcome.

Objectives: Recently published results of the ANGEL-ASPECT and SELECT2 trials suggest that stroke patients presenting with low Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (ASPECTS) benefit from mechanical thrombectomy. Purpose of this retrospective study was to identify factors that are associated with a favorable outcome in patients with low ASPECTS of 4-5 and 0-3 undergoing mechanical thrombectomy.

Material And Methods: All patients reported in the quality registry of the German Society for Neuroradiology that were treated between 2018 and 2020 were analyzed.

Outcome prediction prior to thrombectomy of the posterior circulation with machine learning.

Purpose: Various studies have identified prognostic factors for a favorable outcome of endovascular treatment in posterior circulation. We evaluated various machine learning algorithms in their ability to classify between patients with favorable (defined as 0-2 points on the modified Rankin scale [mRS]), unfavorable (mRS 3-6), poor (mRS 5-6), and nonpoor (mRS 0-4) outcomes at dismissal.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from 415 patients that were treated between 2018 and 2021 from the multicentric DGNR registry.

Thrombectomy of Mild Stroke : An Analysis of the Nationwide Registry of the German Society for Neuroradiology.

Purpose: Whether patients presenting with mild stroke (NIHSS at admission < 6) should be treated with mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is the subject of an ongoing debate. This retrospective study based on large-scale clinical data aims to identify factors associated with favorable outcome (FO) in patients with mild stroke.

Methods: A total of 761 patients with mild stroke enrolled between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2020 in the Quality Registry of the German Society for Neuroradiology were analyzed.

The use of dynamic O-(2-18F-fluoroethyl)-l-tyrosine PET in the diagnosis of patients with progressive and recurrent glioma.

Background: We evaluated the diagnostic value of static and dynamic O-(2-[(18)F]fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine ((18)F-FET) PET parameters in patients with progressive or recurrent glioma.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 132 dynamic (18)F-FET PET and conventional MRI scans of 124 glioma patients (primary World Health Organization grade II, n = 55; grade III, n = 19; grade IV, n = 50; mean age, 52 ± 14 y). Patients had been referred for PET assessment with clinical signs and/or MRI findings suggestive of tumor progression or recurrence based on Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology criteria.

A multisensor implant for continuous monitoring of intracranial pressure dynamics.

In humans, intracranial pressure (ICP) is not only influenced by pathology, but also by orientation in space and body movements. Therefore, it is proposed to measure ICP dynamics and body acceleration simultaneously. An algorithm for acceleration analysis was developed to monitor orientation in space and allow more accurate examination of ICP dynamics during quiet periods.

Syringomyelia in preterm children with posthemorrhagic occlusive hydrocephalus.

Objective And Importance: Whereas posthemorrhagic hydrocephalus is well known after preterm birth, its association with syringomyelia has been reported only once. Here, we describe two additional patients showing this rare constellation.

Clinical Presentation: The children had been born after 27 and 28 completed weeks of gestation, respectively.

Experience with a gravitational valve in the management of symptomatic overdrainage in children with shunts.

Object: Symptomatic overdrainage in children with shunt-treated hydrocephalus represents one of the more difficult shunt-related diseases and may require repeated surgery. Gravity-assisted valve design has become a standard device to avoid overdrainage in many European pediatric hydrocephalus centers. However, the use of a gravitational valve for relieving symptoms associated with overdrainage has not yet been addressed.

Management of hydrocephalus in infants by using shunts with adjustable valves.

Object: Previous reports suggest that the use of adjustable differential-pressure valves may improve shunt performance. The absence of a flow- or siphon-controlled mechanism, however, is a concern. The goal of this prospective study was to assess the efficacy of valve adjustments in preventing slitlike ventricles in children < 6 months old after the first shunt insertion.

Jefferson fracture in a child--illustrative case report.

In adults, atlas burst fractures (Jefferson fractures) are not uncommon. In the pediatric population, they are extremely rare, and only few cases have been reported so far. They all showed a highly consistent clinical presentation with rare neurological deficits as well as recovery with full function without any surgical intervention.

Low-dose aspirin before spinal surgery: results of a survey among neurosurgeons in Germany.

The main problem faced by the increasing numbers of patients presenting for spinal surgery are receiving concurrent medication with low-dose aspirin, leading to dysfunctional circulating platelets. The contribution of low-dose aspirin to increased peri-operative risk of bleeding and blood loss is a contentious issue with conflicting published results from different surgical groups. Data from neurosurgical spine patients is sparse, but aspirin has been identified as an important risk factor in the development of post-operative hematoma following intracranial surgery.

Spinal dural arteriovenous fistula associated with a spinal perimedullary fistula: case report.

Among spinal cord vascular malformations, dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) must be distinguished from intradural malformations. The concurrence of both is extremely rare. The authors report the case of a 35-year-old man who suffered from progressive myelopathy and who harbored both a DAVF and an intradural perimedullary fistula.

Endoscopic transtentorial ventriculocystostomy and cystoventriculoperitoneal shunt in a neonate with Dandy-Walker malformation and associated aqueductal obstruction.

Objective: Shunting of the lateral ventricle and the posterior fossa cyst is the advocated surgical therapy for children with Dandy-Walker malformation (DWM) and associated aqueductal obstruction. The high rate of complications of combined shunting stimulated the authors to search for an alternative surgical solution.

Clinical Presentation/intervention: After transtentorial endoscopic ventriculocystostomy, a cystoventricular catheter, connected to a peritoneal shunt, was placed in a neonate with DWM and associated aqueductal obstruction.

Endothelin-mediated induction of heme oxygenase-1 in the spinal cord is attenuated in transgenic mice overexpressing superoxide dismutase.

Spinal cord blood flow and the induction of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), an indicator of oxidative stress, were studied in the spinal cords of adult wild-type and transgenic mice overexpressing the antioxidant copper, zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZn SOD) after intrathecal administration of the potent vasoactive peptide endothelin-1 (ET-1). Gelfoam, saturated with ET-1 (40, 80, or 400 micromol/L), was positioned in the intrathecal space at the midthoracic level in anesthetized animals. Blood flow was continuously monitored by laser Doppler for 10 min after the intrathecal application of ET-1.

Attenuated induction of heme oxygenase after intrathecal exposure to lysed blood in mice overexpressing superoxide dismutase.

Induction of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in the spinal cord was studied in adult wildtype and transgenic mice overexpressing the antioxidant copper, zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZn SOD) 24 h after intrathecal infusion of heterologous lysed blood. Double immunolabeling techniques were used to determine the extent to which HO-1 was induced in astrocytes and microglia/macrophages. HO-1 was induced in both astrocytes and microglia/macrophages in the dorsal horns near the site of infusion of lysed blood in all mice.

Postshunt insertion CSF leaks in infants treated by an adjustable valve opening pressure reduction.

Objects: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakages through the operation wound following shunt placement are commonly treated by head elevation when the shunt is patent and signs of infection are absent.

Methods And Results: In two cases in which the standard therapy of head elevation failed, the leakage was successfully managed by temporary lowering of the opening pressure of the implanted programmable valve. Case 1 was that of a preterm baby with repaired meningomyelocele and shunted hydrocephalus.

Changes in regional energy metabolism after cortical cold lesion in the rat brain.

In the present investigation, regional ATP, glucose, and lactate contents were examined in the cortical and subcortical structures after cold lesion in rats. Bioluminescence imaging of ATP, glucose, and lactate was performed in serial tissue sections at 4 h (n = 4), 12 h (n = 4) and 24 h (n = 4) after cold injury or sham surgery. Bioluminescence images were analyzed by computer-assisted densitometry, at the lesion site, in cortical areas, in the hippocampus, and in the thalamus.