Timed up and go test at tap test and shunt surgery in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus.

Background: The 3-meter Timed Up and Go test (TUG) is a reliable quantitative test for assessment of gait and balance. We aimed to establish an optimal threshold of TUG at the tap test for predicting outcomes 12 months after shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH).

Methods: The TUG was measured in a total of 151 patients with possible iNPH before and after a tap test and 12 months after shunt surgery.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of shunt surgery for idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus based on the SINPHONI and SINPHONI-2 trials.

Background: We showed that ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt and lumboperitoneal (LP) shunt surgeries are beneficial for patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) in the Study of Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus on Neurological Improvement (SINPHONI; a multicenter prospective cohort study) and in SINPHONI-2 (a multicenter randomized trial). Although therapeutic efficacy is important, cost-effectiveness analysis is equally valuable.

Methods: Using both a set of assumptions and using the data from SINPHONI and SINPHONI-2, we estimated the total cost of treatment for iNPH, which consists of medical expenses (e.

Disability risk or unimproved symptoms following shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus: post hoc analysis of SINPHONI-2.

OBJECTIVE The study aim was to assess the influence of presurgical clinical symptom severity and disease duration on outcomes of shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH). The authors also evaluated the cerebrospinal fluid tap test as a predictor of improvements following shunt surgery. METHODS Eighty-three patients (45 men and 38 women, mean age 76.

Disease duration: the key to accurate CSF tap test in iNPH.

Objectives: The cerebrospinal fluid tap test for idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is one of the good predictors of the shunt treatment, although this test has a low sensitivity. We aimed to identify key parameters that could be used to improve this sensitivity.

Materials & Methods: During 2010-2011, we recruited and then followed 93 patients with possible iNPH for 12 months after shunt.

[Evaluation of deep infection of the surgical site after spine surgery].

Objective: Surgical site infection(SSI)is commonly seen following spinal surgery, and it can be associated with serious morbidity, mortality, and increased resource utilization. The objective of this study was to identify specific independent risk factors for SSI occurring after spinal surgery.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of patients who had spinal surgeries performed from January 2007 to July 2012 at our hospital.

Use of bioabsorbable plates for cranial fixation.

LactoSorb fixation plates are made of a bioabsorbable polymer (82% poly-L-lactic acid and 18% polyglycolic acid), and the strength is not inferior to titanium plates. LactoSorb has been used in the fields of pediatric neurosurgery and facial plastic surgery. Cranial fixation in craniotomy is mostly performed using titanium plates and clamps, but there are issues with esthetics and artifacts on postoperative radiographic images.

[Current status and issues of stroke care in the Hokumou Secondary Medical District: the activity of the Okhotsk Stroke Association].

To achieve good care for stroke patients in the Hokumou Secondary Medical District, we reaffirmed the current status of the services, discovered the keypoints and issues, and searched for solutions to the current problems. The population, its age composition and the number of beds occupied by stroke patients--stratified in acute, convalescent and maintenance stages-were surveyed. The number of patients suffering from stroke under the jurisdiction of this district was compiled, by using the "regional alliance path for stroke," and the severity and outcome of each case were evaluated by using the mRS (modified Rankin Scale).