Minimally invasive approaches for the treatment of intramedullary spinal tumors.

Intramedullary spinal cord tumors constitute 8% to 10% of all primary spinal cord tumors. The clinical presentation of primary spinal cord tumors is determined in part by the location of the tumor, and in nearly all clinical instances pain is the predominant presenting symptom. Motor disturbance is the next most common symptom, followed by sensory loss.

Teaching NeuroImages: sacral spine chloroma.

A 23-year-old man with recurrent acute myeloid leukemia (AML) underwent successful reinduction and was judged posttherapy to be in complete remission. Soon thereafter, he complained of pain in his left buttock radiating into his left posterior thigh. Neurologic examination was unremarkable.

The future of spine surgery: New horizons in the treatment of spinal disorders.

Background And Methods: As with any evolving surgical discipline, it is difficult to predict the future of the practice and science of spine surgery. In the last decade, there have been dramatic developments in both the techniques as well as the tools employed in the delivery of better outcomes to patients undergoing such surgery. In this article, we explore four specific areas in spine surgery: namely the role of minimally invasive spine surgery; motion preservation; robotic-aided surgery and neuro-navigation; and the use of biological substances to reduce the number of traditional and revision spine surgeries.

Adult primary intradural spinal cord tumors: a review.

Primary spinal cord tumors constitute 2% to 4% of all central nervous system neoplasms and are characterized based on their location as intramedullary, intradural extramedullary, and extradural. A contemporary literature review of primary intradural spinal cord tumors was performed. Among intramedullary tumors, ependymomas are more common and often can be surgically resected.

Cervical spinal cord, root, and bony spine injuries: a closed claims analysis.

Background: The aim of this study was to characterize cervical cord, root, and bony spine claims in the American Society of Anesthesiologists Closed Claims database to formulate hypotheses regarding mechanisms of injury.

Methods: All general anesthesia claims (1970-2007) in the Closed Claims database were searched to identify cervical injuries. Three independent teams, each consisting of an anesthesiologist and neurosurgeon, used a standardized review form to extract data from claim summaries and judge probable contributors to injury.

A novel minimally invasive technique for spinal cord untethering.

Objective: Minimally invasive surgical techniques have been described for the treatment of spinal pathology. Tethered cord syndrome is an under-diagnosed condition of abnormally rigid fixation of the spinal cord that results in spinal cord tension leading to ischemia. It can be the cause of incontinence, scoliosis, and chronic back and leg pain.

Spinal intramedullary histoplasmosis as the initial presentation of human immunodeficiency virus infection: case report.

Objective: Spinal intramedullary histoplasmosis is an extremely rare condition. We report a case of isolated intramedullary histoplasmosis as the initial manifestation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.

Clinical Presentation: A 27-year-old man presented with a rapidly progressive paraparesis.

Minimally invasive lumbar decompression.

With the increasing elderly population, the number of patients presenting with symptoms secondary to lumbar stenosis can be expected to increase accordingly. Therefore, treatment of this disease process should become more prevalent, and the minimally invasive techniques offer another treatment option. As surgeons become more experienced in minimally invasive techniques, the reported advantages of the minimal access surgery, including reduction in soft tissue injury, less blood loss, shorter hospitalization, and faster recovery, should make this an attractive alternative to traditional open surgery.

Minimally invasive resection of intradural-extramedullary spinal neoplasms.

Objective: Spinal intradural-extramedullary neoplasms are uncommon lesions that usually cause pain or neurological deficit secondary to neural compression. Traditional treatment of these tumors includes open laminectomy with intradural resection. We describe an alternative minimally invasive surgical technique in a consecutive series of patients undergoing treatment for symptomatic lesions.