Prevalence of pineal cysts in healthy individuals: Emphasis on size, morphology and pineal recess crowding.

The present study aimed to determine prevalence of non-hydrocephalic pineal cysts of different size and morphology in healthy individuals. In a cohort of healthy individuals who as part of research volunteered to undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, we performed a systematic search for occurrence of pineal cysts of different sizes, morphology and evidence of crowding of the pineal recess. Degree of crowding in the pineal recess was estimated by the imaging biomarkers anterior-posterior diameter and cyst-tectum-splenium (CTS) ratio at midsagittal MRI.

Evidence for widespread alterations in cortical microstructure after 32 h of sleep deprivation.

Cortical microstructure is influenced by circadian rhythm and sleep deprivation, yet the precise underpinnings of these effects remain unclear. The ratio between T-weighted and T-weighted magnetic resonance images (Tw/Tw ratio) has been linked to myelin levels and dendrite density and may offer novel insight into the intracortical microstructure of the sleep deprived brain. Here, we examined intracortical Tw/Tw ratio in 41 healthy young adults (26 women) before and after 32 h of either sleep deprivation (n = 18) or a normal sleep-wake cycle (n = 23).

Choroid Plexus Tumors in Children: Long-Term Follow-Up of Consecutive Single-Institutional Series of 59 Patients Treated over a Period of 8 Decades (1939-2020).

Objective: To present long-term follow-up of a consecutive single-institutional series of patients treated for choroid plexus tumors over 8 decades.

Methods: From 1939 to 2020, 59 children were treated for choroid plexus tumors. Median age at diagnosis was 1.

Outcome after treatment of pediatric supratentorial ependymoma: long-term follow-up of a single consecutive institutional series of 26 patients.

Background: Long-term outcome after surgical treatment of supratentorial ependymoma (STE) in children has not been extensively reported.

Findings: We identified 26 children who underwent primary tumor resection of STE between 1953 and 2011, with at least 8 years follow-up. Ten patients (38%) had anaplastic and 16 had low grade ependymoma.

The Relationship of Psychiatric Symptoms with Performance-Based and Self-Reported Cognitive Function After Ischemic Stroke.

Objective: Findings on the relationship of psychiatric symptoms with performance-based and self-reported cognitive function post-stroke are inconclusive. We aimed to (1) study the relation of depression and anxiety to performance-based cognitive function and (2) explore a broader spectrum of psychiatric symptoms and their association with performance-based versus self-reported cognitive function.

Method: Individuals with supratentorial ischemic stroke performed neuropsychological examination 3 months after stroke.

Outcome After Treatment of Spinal Ependymoma in Children and Adolescents: Long-Term Follow-up of a Single Consecutive Institutional Series of 33 Patients Treated Over Eight Decades.

Background: Long-term outcomes for pediatric patients treated for spinal ependymoma are unknown.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of outcome data from 33 children and young adults (0-22 years) who were operated on for a spinal ependymoma at our institution during the last 8 decades (1938-2019).

Results: Nineteen patients are alive, with follow-up period up to 60 years.

Sleep and sleep deprivation differentially alter white matter microstructure: A mixed model design utilising advanced diffusion modelling.

Sleep deprivation influences several critical functions, yet how it affects human brain white matter (WM) is not well understood. The aim of the present work was to investigate the effect of 32 hours of sleep deprivation on WM microstructure compared to changes observed in a normal sleep-wake cycle (SWC). To this end, we utilised diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) including the diffusion tensor model, diffusion kurtosis imaging and the spherical mean technique, a novel biophysical diffusion model.

Outcomes in adulthood after neurosurgical treatment of brain tumors in the first 3 years of life: long-term follow-up of a single consecutive institutional series of 97 patients.

Background: Long-term outcome for children who underwent surgery for brain tumors in the first 3 years of life is not well-known.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study on surgical morbidity, mortality rate, academic achievement, and work participation in children below 3 years of age who underwent primary tumor resection for a brain tumor in the period from 1973 to 1998. Gross motor function and activities of daily life were scored according to the Barthel Index.

Long-term outcome of posterior fossa medulloblastoma in patients surviving more than 20 years following primary treatment in childhood.

The aim of the study was to analyze the long-term outcome (>20 years) after treatment of posterior fossa medulloblastoma (MB) in childhood. We analyzed data from patients treated for posterior fossa MB between 1974 (introduction of the first international treatment protocol in Norway) and 1987 (when use of radiotherapy was abandoned in children under 4 years of age). Out of 47 children, 24 survived >20 years.

Adult outcome after treatment of pediatric posterior fossa ependymoma: long-term follow-up of a single consecutive institutional series of 22 patients with more than 5 years of survival.

Objective: Ependymoma is the third most common posterior fossa tumor in children; however, there is a lack of long-term follow-up data on outcomes after surgical treatment of posterior fossa ependymoma (PFE) in pediatric patients. Therefore, the authors sought to investigate the long-term outcomes of children treated for PFE at their institution.

Methods: The authors performed a retrospective analysis of outcome data from children who underwent treatment for PFE and survived for at least 5 years.

Evidence for wakefulness-related changes to extracellular space in human brain white matter from diffusion-weighted MRI.

Recently, several magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have reported time-of-day effects on brain structure and function. Due to the possibility that time-of-day effects reflect mechanisms of circadian regulation, the aim of this prospective study was to assess these effects while under strict experimental control of variables that might influence biological clocks, such as caffeine intake and exposure to blue-emitting light. In addition, the current study assessed whether time-of-day effects were driven by changes to extracellular space, by including estimations of non-Gaussian diffusion metrics obtained from diffusion kurtosis imaging, white matter tract integrity and the spherical mean technique, in addition to conventional diffusion tensor imaging -derived parameters.

Prediction of survival and progression in glioblastoma patients using temporal perfusion changes during radiochemotherapy.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate changes in structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) according to the RANO criteria and perfusion- and permeability related metrics derived from dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE) and dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI (DSC) during radiochemotherapy for prediction of progression and survival in glioblastoma.

Methods: Twenty-three glioblastoma patients underwent biweekly structural and perfusion MRI before, during, and two weeks after a six weeks course of radiochemotherapy. Temporal trends of tumor volume and the perfusion-derived parameters cerebral blood volume (CBV) and blood flow (CBF) from DSC and DCE, in addition to contrast agent capillary transfer constant (K) from DCE, were assessed.

The Impact of MRI Features and Observer Confidence on the Treatment Decision-Making for Patients with Untreated Glioma.

In a blind, dual-center, multi-observer setting, we here identify the pre-treatment radiologic features by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) associated with subsequent treatment options in patients with glioma. Study included 220 previously untreated adult patients from two institutions (94 + 126 patients) with a histopathologically confirmed diagnosis of glioma after surgery. Using a blind, cross-institutional and randomized setup, four expert neuroradiologists recorded radiologic features, suggested glioma grade and corresponding confidence.

Prosocial behavior relates to the rate and timing of cortical thinning from adolescence to young adulthood.

Prosocial behavior, or voluntary actions that intentionally benefit others, relate to desirable developmental outcomes such as peer acceptance, while lack of prosocial behavior has been associated with several neurodevelopmental disorders. Mapping the biological foundations of prosociality may thus aid our understanding of both normal and abnormal development, yet how prosociality relates to cortical development is largely unknown. Here, relations between prosociality, as measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (self-report), and changes in thickness across the cortical mantle were examined using mixed-effects models.

Robust association between vascular habitats and patient prognosis in glioblastoma: An international multicenter study.

Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive primary brain tumor, characterized by a heterogeneous and abnormal vascularity. Subtypes of vascular habitats within the tumor and edema can be distinguished: high angiogenic tumor (HAT), low angiogenic tumor (LAT), infiltrated peripheral edema (IPE), and vasogenic peripheral edema (VPE).

Purpose: To validate the association between hemodynamic markers from vascular habitats and overall survival (OS) in glioblastoma patients, considering the intercenter variability of acquisition protocols.

Adult outcome after neurosurgical treatment of brain tumours in the first year of life: long-term follow-up of a single consecutive institutional series of 34 patients.

Background: Long-term results for adult patients who underwent surgery for paediatric brain tumours in the first year of life have not been reported.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study on surgical morbidity, mortality rate, academic achievement and/or work participation in patients who underwent primary tumour resection for a brain tumour as infants in the period from 1973 to 1998. Gross motor function and activities of daily life were scored according to the Barthel Index.

Children treated for medulloblastoma and supratentorial primitive neuroectodermal tumor in Norway from 1974 through 2013: Unexplainable regional differences in survival.

Background: A previous study based on Norwegian Cancer Registry data suggested regional differences in overall survival (OS) after treatment for medulloblastoma (MB) and supratentorial primitive neuroectodermal tumor (CNS-PNET) in Norway. The purpose of the present study was to confirm in an extended cohort whether there were regional differences in outcome or not, and if so try to identify possible explanations.

Material And Methods: Data from patients aged 0-20 years diagnosed with and treated for MB/CNS-PNET at all four university hospitals in Norway from 1974 to 2013 were collected and compared.

Neurosurgical treatment of pediatric pleomorphic xanthoastrocytomas: long-term follow-up of a single-institution, consecutive series of 12 patients.

Objective: The authors conducted a study to delineate the long-term results of the surgical treatment of pediatric pleomorphic xanthoastrocytomas (PXAs).

Methods: All consecutive children and adolescents (0-20 years) who underwent primary tumor resection for a PXA during the years 1972-2015 were included in this retrospective study on surgical morbidity, mortality rate, academic achievement, and/or work participation. Gross motor function and activities of daily living were scored according to the Barthel Index.

Towards patient-specific modeling of brain tumor growth and formation of secondary nodes guided by DTI-MRI.

Previous studies to simulate brain tumor progression, often investigate either temporal changes in cancer cell density or the overall tissue-level growth of the tumor mass. Here, we developed a computational model to bridge these two approaches. The model incorporates the tumor biomechanical response at the tissue level and accounts for cellular events by modeling cancer cell proliferation, infiltration to surrounding tissues, and invasion to distant locations.

Development of white matter microstructure in relation to verbal and visuospatial working memory-A longitudinal study.

Working memory capacity is pivotal for a broad specter of cognitive tasks and develops throughout childhood. This must in part rely on development of neural connections and white matter microstructure maturation, but there is scarce knowledge of specific relations between this and different aspects of working memory. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) enables us to study development of brain white matter microstructure.