Direct clipping of a thrombosed giant cerebral aneurysm after thrombectomy without bleeding to minimize the temporary occlusion time-technical case report-.

A 75-year-old man was referred to our hospital with a thrombosed giant middle cerebral artery aneurysm manifesting as progressive memory disturbance and disorientation. Magnetic resonance imaging and conventional angiography revealed a partially thrombosed giant aneurysm of the left middle cerebral artery bifurcation and edema of the adjacent brain which had enlarged compared to 3 months before. Surgery was performed through a left frontotemporal craniotomy.

Neuroprotective effects of group II metabotropic glutamate receptor agonist DCG-IV on hippocampal neurons in transient forebrain ischemia.

Activation of group II metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) inhibits the excessive release of glutamate that may be crucial in the pathogenesis of cerebral ischemia. This study investigated the protective effects of the group II mGluR agonist (2S,2'R,3'R)-2-(2',3'-dicarboxycyclopropyl)glycine (DCG-IV), against cerebral ischemia by examining extracellular glutamate concentration ([Glu]e) and neuronal damage in a rat model of transient forebrain ischemia. Cerebral ischemia was induced by 5 min of bilateral carotid artery occlusion and hypotension.

Diffusion tensor tractography predicts motor functional outcome in patients with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage.

Objective: We prospectively investigated the predictive value of diffusion tensor tractography for motor functional outcome in a case series of patients with intracerebral hemorrhage.

Methods: Diffusion tensor tractography was performed in 17 patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (putamen, nine patients; thalamus, seven patients; combined, one patient) within 5 days after onset. Mean fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values along the corticospinal tracts at the level of the hematoma were measured bilaterally, and the ratios of values (hematoma side/contralateral side) were determined as FA and ADC ratios, respectively.

[A middle cerebral artery dissecting aneurysm manifesting solely with pain, following a vertebral artery dissecting aneurysm].

A 41-year-old male had presented with severe neck pain and was diagnosed as having a left vertebral artery (VA) dissecting aneurysm. During the observation period, he suddenly suffered from a pain on his left temple. MR imaging revealed neither SAH nor cerebral infarction.

Phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor, zaprinast, selectively increases cerebral blood flow in the ischemic penumbra in the rat brain.

Background: Guanosine 3', 5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP) acts as a relaxant second messenger in the cerebral vessels. cGMP-specific phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor increases intracellular cGMP levels. This study investigated the effect of the PDE5 inhibitor on the ischemic brain.

Solitary plasmacytoma of the skull: immunohistochemical study of angiogenic factors and syndecan-1--two case reports.

Two cases of solitary plasmacytomas of the skull are presented, and some biological aspects of the tumor examined. A 75-year-old woman presented with a tumor in the right parietal region. The serum level of immunoglobulin G (IgG) was high and a urine test for Bence Jones protein was negative.

Size of cerebral aneurysms and related factors in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Background: As the indication for surgical treatment of incidentally discovered small aneurysms remains controversial.

Methods: We retrospectively investigated the characteristics of small ruptured aneurysms and examined the relationship between the size and location of ruptured intracranial aneurysms and the sex, age, lifestyle, and medical history of 280 patients with ruptured aneurysm treated at our institute.

Results: The mean diameter of ruptured aneurysms in this series was 7.

Magnetic resonance angiographic evidence of sex-linked variations in the circle of willis and the occurrence of cerebral aneurysms.

Object: In this study the authors investigated the relationship between variations in the circle of Willis observed on magnetic resonance (MR) angiograms and locations of cerebral aneurysms, and evaluated the risk of aneurysm formation.

Methods: One hundred thirty-one patients with cerebral aneurysms were retrospectively selected from a series of 4518 patients who underwent MR angiography at one neurosurgical institute. Variations in the anatomy of the circle of Willis were simply classified into Type A, in which there was no visualization of a unilateral A1 segment, and Type P, in which there was a fetal type of posterior cerebral artery that was continuously delineated from the internal carotid artery (ICA) through the posterior communicating artery.

Molecular mechanisms of cardiostimulatory effects of sildenafil.

To better understand the molecular mechanisms of the previously described cardiostimulatory action of the phosphodiesterase type-5 (PDE5) inhibitor sildenafil, we first evaluated its effects on cyclic AMP level in the canine ventricular membrane preparation. Sildenafil (10 micromol/L) significantly increased the net cyclic AMP production rate, the potency of which was similar to that of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX). Next, we assessed the inhibitory effect of sildenafil on PDE of bovine heart.

Surgical management of aneurysms of the bifurcation of the internal carotid artery.

Internal carotid artery (ICA) bifurcation aneurysms are rare and easily bleed in younger patients, but are difficult to treat surgically, due to perforators surrounding and adherent to the aneurysm. A series of 25 patients treated by clipping under the operating microscope are analyzed and compared with previous cases. Twenty-five patients, 11 men and 14 women (mean age 51 years), were treated by the same neurosurgeon.