Postoperative seizures following the resection of convexity meningiomas: are prophylactic anticonvulsants indicated? Clinical article.

Object: Seizures in the perioperative period are a well-recognized clinical entity in the setting of brain tumor surgery. At present, the suitability of antiepileptic prophylaxis in patients following brain tumor surgery is unclear, especially in those without prior seizures. Given the paucity of tumor-type and site-specific data, the authors evaluated the incidence of postoperative seizures in patients with convexity meningiomas and no prior seizures.

Intratumoral hemorrhage and fibrosis in vestibular schwannoma: a possible mechanism for hearing loss.

Object: Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) are benign lesions with an unpredictable natural history. Perhaps the greatest barrier to predicting which patients need treatment is our poor understanding of how these tumors cause hearing loss in the first place. In this case-control study, the authors investigated the relationship between preoperative hearing loss and histological changes such as intratumoral microhemorrhage and extensive fibrosis.

Clinical characteristics and surgical outcomes of patients presenting with meningiomas arising predominantly from the floor of the middle fossa.

Background: Little is known regarding meningiomas that primarily arise from the floor of the middle fossa as opposed to the sphenoid wing, the cavernous sinus, the anterior petrous ridge, or the lateral convexity dura.

Objective: Given the relative paucity of literature addressing this disease entity, we review the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) experience with these tumors.

Methods: Between 1991 and 2006, 1228 patients were seen by neurosurgeons at UCSF for meningiomas of which 17 (1.

Endocrinologic, neurologic, and visual morbidity after treatment for craniopharyngioma.

Craniopharyngiomas are locally aggressive tumors which typically are focused in the sellar and suprasellar region near a number of critical neural and vascular structures mediating endocrinologic, behavioral, and visual functions. The present study aims to summarize and compare the published literature regarding morbidity resulting from treatment of craniopharyngioma. We performed a comprehensive search of the published English language literature to identify studies publishing outcome data of patients undergoing surgery for craniopharyngioma.

The complement cascade as a mediator of tissue growth and regeneration.

Recent evidence has demonstrated that the complement cascade is involved in a variety of physiologic and pathophysiologic processes in addition to its role as an immune effector. Research in a variety of organ systems has shown that complement proteins are direct participants in maintenance of cellular turnover, healing, proliferation and regeneration. As a physiologic housekeeper, complement proteins maintain tissue integrity in the absence of inflammation by disposing of cellular debris and waste, a process critical to the prevention of autoimmune disease.

A prospective study of hearing preservation in untreated vestibular schwannomas.

Object: The authors previously published a systematic review of the English language literature regarding the natural history of untreated vestibular schwannomas (VSs). This analysis found that the best predictor of future hearing loss was tumor growth > 2.5 mm/year on serial imaging, a factor that doubled the rate of hearing loss.

The value of intraoperative facial nerve electromyography in predicting facial nerve function after vestibular schwannoma surgery.

The prognostic significance of intraoperative facial nerve electromyography (EMG) changes is not well-established in vestibular schwannoma (VS) surgery. We studied facial nerve EMG with a threshold >0.05mA and performed subgroup analyses based on tumor size, resection approach, and extent of resection, for prediction of long-term facial nerve outcome.

Factors influencing overall survival rates for patients with pineocytoma.

Given its rarity, appropriate treatment for pineocytoma remains variable. As the literature primarily contains case reports or studies involving a small series of patients, prognostic factors following treatment of pineocytoma remain unclear. We therefore compiled a systematic review of the literature concerning post-treatment outcomes for pineocytoma to better determine factors associated with overall survival among patients with pineocytoma.

Factors affecting outcome following treatment of patients with cavernous sinus meningiomas.

Object: Although there is a considerable volume of literature available on the treatment of patients with cavernous sinus meningiomas (CSMs), most of the data regarding tumor control and survival come from case studies or single-institution series. The authors performed a meta-analysis of reported tumor control and survival rates of patients described in the published literature, with an emphasis on specific prognostic factors.

Methods: The authors systematically analyzed the published literature and found more than 3000 patients treated for CSMs.

Treatment decision making based on the published natural history and growth rate of small meningiomas.

Object: Definitive data allowing clinicians to predict which meningioma patients will fail to respond to conservative management are lacking. To address this need, the authors systematically reviewed the published literature regarding the natural history of small, untreated meningiomas.

Methods: The authors performed a systematic review of the existing literature on untreated meningiomas that were followed with serial MR imaging.

Prevalence of previous extracranial malignancies in a series of 1228 patients presenting with meningioma.

Object: The study of patients with multiple neoplasms can yield valuable insight into the common pathogenesis of both diseases, as well as identify more subtle risk factors that might not be as readily apparent otherwise. The authors present an analysis of the prevalence of previously diagnosed extracranial malignancies at the time of meningioma diagnosis in 1228 patients evaluated at a single institution.

Methods: All patients who underwent evaluation and/or treatment for meningioma between 1991 and 2007 at the authors' institution were identified.

Complement and the central nervous system: emerging roles in development, protection and regeneration.

As expanding research reveals the novel ability of complement proteins to promote proliferation and regeneration of tissues throughout the body, the concept of the complement cascade as an innate immune effector has changed rapidly. In particular, its interactions with the central nervous system have provided a wealth of information regarding the ability of complement proteins to mediate neurogenesis, synaptogenesis, cell migration, neuroprotection, proliferation and regeneration. At numerous phases of the neuronal and glial cell cycle, complement proteins exert direct or indirect influence over their behavior and fate.

The relevance of Simpson Grade I and II resection in modern neurosurgical treatment of World Health Organization Grade I meningiomas.

Object: In 1957, Simpson published a seminal paper defining the risk factors for recurrence following surgical treatment of intracranial meningiomas. Given that Simpson's study was published more than 50 years ago, preceding image guidance technology and MR imaging, the authors reviewed their own experience with surgical treatment of Grade I meningiomas to determine if Simpson's grading scale is still relevant to modern neurosurgical practice.

Methods: From this cohort, the authors evaluated all patients undergoing craniotomy for resection of a histologically proven WHO Grade I meningioma as their initial therapy.

Craniopharyngioma: a comparison of tumor control with various treatment strategies.

Object: Craniopharyngiomas have a propensity to recur after resection, potentially causing death through their aggressive local behavior in their critical site of origin. Recent data suggest that subtotal resection (STR) followed by adjuvant radiotherapy (XRT) may be an appealing substitute for gross-total resection (GTR), providing similar rates of tumor control without the morbidity associated with aggressive resection. Here, the authors summarize the published literature regarding rates of tumor control with various treatment modalities for craniopharyngiomas.

Predictors of mortality following treatment of intracranial hemangiopericytoma.

Object: Intracranial hemangiopericytoma (HPC) is a rare and malignant extraaxial tumor with a high proclivity toward recurrence and metastasis. Given this lesion's rarity, little information exists on prognostic factors influencing mortality rates following treatment with surgery or radiation or both. A systematic review of the published literature was performed to ascertain predictors of death following treatment for intracranial HPC.

Posttreatment prognosis of patients with esthesioneuroblastoma.

Object: There is no Class I evidence to guide the appropriate management of esthesioneuroblastoma (EN). Most data currently guiding treatment come from small- or modest-sized series gathered at individual centers that have concluded that surgery with radiotherapy is the preferred treatment. In this study, the authors summarize the published literature on treatment outcomes in patients with EN.

Outcome and survival following primary and repeat surgery for World Health Organization Grade III meningiomas.

Object: Despite an increased understanding of the biology of malignant meningioma tumor progression, there is a paucity of published clinical data on factors affecting outcomes following treatment for these lesions. The authors present the largest case series to date dealing with these tumors, providing analysis of 63 patients.

Methods: The authors identified all patients undergoing resection of WHO Grade III tumors at their institution over a 16-year period.

Long term outcome following repeat transsphenoidal surgery for recurrent endocrine-inactive pituitary adenomas.

It is widely accepted that the standard first-line treatment for most endocrine inactive pituitary macroadenomas (EIA) is surgery, usually via a transsphenoidal approach. What is less clear is what approach to take when these tumors recur, especially when this recurrence involves areas which are difficult to surgically remove tumor from, such as the suprasellar region or cavernous sinuses. We present long term follow-up for a series of 81 patients who underwent repeat surgery for recurrent non-secreting pituitary adenomas.

Tumor control after surgery and radiotherapy for pineocytoma.

Object: Pineocytoma is a rare tumor, and the current literature on these tumors is primarily composed of case reports and small case series. Thus, recommendations on appropriate treatment of these tumors are highly varied. Therefore, the authors performed a systematic review of the literature on tumor control after surgery for pineocytoma to determine the relative benefits of aggressive resection and postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy.

Data presentation in rodent stroke studies and the predictive value of confidence intervals.

The clinical failure of neuroprotective agents stems partly from inappropriate statistical presentation of preclinical data, which causes an overestimation of effect size and underpowered clinical studies. We searched for studies utilizing neuroprotective agents in a rodent middle cerebral artery occlusion model. We identified all experimental groups demonstrating statistically significant claims of neuroprotection within these studies and calculated the mean, 95% confidence intervals (CI), and meta-analyses of effect size for each agent.

Non-audiofacial morbidity after Gamma Knife surgery for vestibular schwannoma.

Object: While many studies have been published outlining morbidity following radiosurgical treatment of vestibular schwannomas, significant interpractitioner and institutional variability still exists. For this reason, the authors conducted a systematic review of the literature for non-audiofacial-related morbidity after the treatment of vestibular schwannoma with radiosurgery.

Methods: The authors performed a comprehensive search of the English-language literature to identify studies that published outcome data of patients undergoing radiosurgery treatment for vestibular schwannomas.

Radiobiology of vestibular schwannomas: mechanisms of radioresistance and potential targets for therapeutic sensitization.

Vestibular schwannomas (VS) are benign tumors arising from the Schwann cells of cranial nerve VIII. Historically the prevailing therapy for patients with VS has been microsurgical resection. More recently, stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy have gained acceptance as effective alternatives.

Beyond audiofacial morbidity after vestibular schwannoma surgery.

Object: Outcomes following vestibular schwannoma (VS) surgery have been extensively described; however, complication rates reported in the literature vary markedly. In addition, the majority of reports have focused on outcomes related to cranial nerves (CNs) VII and VIII. The objective of this study was to analyze reported morbidity unrelated to CNs VII and VIII following the resection of VS.

Molecular biology of familial and sporadic vestibular schwannomas: implications for novel therapeutics.

Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) are benign tumors arising from the sheath of cranial nerve VIII. The pathogenesis underlying most familial and sporadic VSs has been linked to a mutation in a single gene, the neurofibromin 2 (NF2) gene located on chromosome 22, band q11-13.1.

Immunological considerations of modern animal models of malignant primary brain tumors.

Recent advances in animal models of glioma have facilitated a better understanding of biological mechanisms underlying gliomagenesis and glioma progression. The limitations of existing therapy, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, have prompted numerous investigators to search for new therapeutic approaches to improve quantity and quality of survival from these aggressive lesions. One of these approaches involves triggering a tumor specific immune response.