Dural venous sinus thrombosis, a subset of cerebral venous thrombosis, is an important pathology due to its significant morbidity and mortality. This process has an annual incidence of three to five cases per million adults. Although copious predisposing factors exist, the core principles revolve around Virchow's triad: venous stasis, hypercoagulability, and vascular endothelial damage.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis systematic literature review explores the intersection of neuroscience and deep learning in the context of decoding motor imagery Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals to enhance the quality of life for individuals with motor disabilities. Currently, the most used non-invasive method for measuring brain activity is the EEG, due to its high temporal resolution, user-friendliness, and safety. A Brain Computer Interface (BCI) framework can be made using these signals which can provide a new communication channel to people that are suffering from motor disabilities or other neurological disorders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Tranexamic acid (TXA), a synthetic antifibrinolytic drug, effectively reduces blood loss by inhibiting plasmin-induced fibrin breakdown. This is the first study in the United Kingdom to investigate the effectiveness of TXA in the surgical management of isolated spine trauma.
Aim: To assess the safety of TXA in isolated spine trauma.
Inflammatory pseudotumors (IPTs) of the liver can mimic malignant lesions. As the name implies, they are usually associated with an inflammatory process and usually regress with the treatment of the underlying pathology. We report a case of a 67-year-old female who presented with right upper quadrant pain, deranged liver enzymes, elevated tumor markers [alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and CA 19-9], and a large liver mass on imaging, suspected to be hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of heterogeneous, multi-factorial, neurodevelopmental disorders resulting from genetic and environmental factors interplay. Infection is a significant trigger of autism, especially during the critical developmental period. There is a strong interplay between the viral infection as a trigger and a result of ASD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA middle-aged female presented with lower abdominal pain associated with nausea and vomiting and was admitted to the acute hospital. She was thoroughly investigated and treated presumably as having a urinary tract infection. However, she was admitted again shortly after discharge with persistent symptoms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Intracranial epidermoid cysts are rare congenital inclusion cysts that can be divided into the classical "black epidermoid" and the exceedingly rare "white epidermoid". White epidermoids are often misdiagnosed because they have different imaging features compared to black epidermoids. There is a paucity of imaging review on white epidermoids.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPedicle screws provide excellent fixation for a wide range of indications. However, their adoption in the cervical spine has been slower than in the thoracic and lumbar spine, which is largely due to the smaller pedicle sizes and the proximity to the neurovascular structures in the neck. In recent years, technology has been developed to improve the accuracy and thereby the safety of cervical pedicle screw placement over traditional fluoroscopic techniques, including intraoperative 3D navigation, computer-assisted Systems and 3D template moulds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic sent shockwaves through health services worldwide. Resources were reallocated. Patients with COVID-19 still required instrumented spinal surgery for emergencies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Working-hour restrictions, rota gaps and an increasing drive for theatre efficiency have resulted in challenges to surgical training. As a result, Virtual Reality (VR) has emerged as a popular tool to augment this training. Our aim was to evaluate the validity of a VR simulator for performing percutaneous pedicle screw guidewire insertion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOccasionally, radiologically diagnosed acute appendicitis is found to harbour underlying appendiceal neoplasm on post-surgical histopathology. Conversely, a situation in which radiologically, the appendix demonstrates features consistent with an underlying tumour but post-operative pathology finds no evidence of neoplastic change is rare. We describe a case of a 50-year-old man who presented with a markedly dilated "mass-like" appendix with minimal inflammatory changes on a computed tomography scan.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this case report is to demonstrate lung perfusion changes on dual-energy CT (DECT) in patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Since the first case of COVID-19 was reported in Wuhan, Hubei province in China, the spectrum of lung parenchymal findings has been well described but the underlying pathophysiology is less well understood. DECT imaging contributes to the growing evidence that vascular dysregulation has an important role in the underlying pathophysiology of the disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStudy Design: Narrative review.
Objective: The high rate of complications associated with the surgical management of neuromuscular spinal deformities is well documented in the literature. This is attributed to attenuated protective physiological responses in multiple organ systems.
Background: The Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak originating in Wuhan, China, has raised global health concerns and the pandemic has now been reported on all inhabited continents. Hitherto, no antiviral drug is available to combat this viral outbreak.
Methods: Keeping in mind the urgency of the situation, the current study was designed to devise new strategies for drug discovery and/or repositioning against SARS-CoV-2.
Background: The aim of this study was to identify the rate of unsuspected malignancy in vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) treated with percutaneous vertebral augmentation procedures (PVAPs).
Methods: From 2004-2015, 410 patients with VCFs underwent PVAPs with biopsy in a single tertiary hospital. All patients had preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) read by consultant radiologists and reviewed by the performing surgeon prior to PVAPs.
Mycotic pseudoaneurysms usually arise from an infectious arteritis or mycotic aneurysms secondary to weakening and destruction of the arterial wall resulting in a contained rupture. We report a case of a mycotic pseudoaneurysm affecting the aortic isthmus of the thoracic aorta which is an extremely rare infection. To our knowledge no case report of mycotic pseudoaneurysm of the aortic isthmus secondary to salmonella infection has thus far been described.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA 61-year-old right-handed man presented for cognitive neurological evaluation with word-finding difficulty, impaired word retrieval, impaired repetition of phrases, and stammering. Brain MRI and FDG-PET/CT were performed as initial imaging workup. Further FDG PET/MRI brain images were obtained through software fusion and revealed regional cortical atrophy with corresponding hypometabolic activity involving the posterior aspects of the left middle and inferior temporal gyri.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: We aim to review the results, complications and outcomes of a single surgeon's series of lower limb lengthening in patients with achondroplasia.
Methods: Ten achondroplastic children underwent limb lengthening. The patients, medical records and radiographs were reviewed.
Purpose: To compare the efficacy and safety of cutting balloon angioplasty (CBA) versus high-pressure balloon angioplasty (HPBA) for the treatment of hemodialysis autogenous fistula stenoses resistant to conventional percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA).
Materials And Methods: In a prospective, randomized clinical trial involving patients with dysfunctional, stenotic hemodialysis arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs), patients were randomized to receive CBA or HPBA if conventional PTA had suboptimal results (ie, residual stenosis > 30%). A total of 516 patients consented to participate in the study from October 2008 to September 2011, 85% of whom (n = 439) had technically successful conventional PTA.
Curr Stem Cell Res Ther
November 2013
Spinal pathologies are a major burden on society and individuals. Recent years have seen a large number of studies dedicated to the use of stem cells in spinal surgery. This review focuses on recent advances and controversies regarding the applications of stem cells in spinal fusion surgery, spinal cord injury and intervertebral disc degeneration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRespiratory disease contributes significantly to the perioperative challenges of surgery. Preexisting pulmonary co-morbidities and respiratory complications can have profound effects on patient outcomes. Knowledge of these conditions and the potentially deleterious effects of anaesthesia and surgery can enable clinicians to optimise lung function, reduce complications and improve results.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Brushite stones were imaged in vitro and then broken with shock wave lithotripsy to assess whether stone fragility correlates with internal stone structure visible on helical computerized tomography.
Materials And Methods: A total of 52 brushite calculi were scanned by micro computerized tomography, weighed, hydrated and placed in a radiological phantom. Stones were scanned using a Philips® Brilliance iCT 256 system and images were evaluated for the visibility of internal structural features.
Objective: The present study is undertaken to evaluate the magnitude of DKA in Saudi population with specific emphasis on clinical laboratory characteristics over 20 years.
Material And Methods: A prospective analysis of hospital records of 240 episodes of DKA requiring inpatient admission from December 1985 to December 2005 in adult patients in a tertiary hospital was performed. Besides the demographic data of the patients, the clinico-laboratory parameters relevant to the diabetes and DKA status were thoroughly reviewed.