Therapeutic Potential of Intravenous Ketamine in Early-Onset Dementia: A Case Report.

This case report discusses the use of intravenous (IV) ketamine as a potential therapeutic agent for early-onset dementia. A 56-year-old female with a diagnosis of early-onset dementia showed significant cognitive decline despite trying and failing several standard treatments such as memantine, donepezil, and rivastigmine. Given the promising results of ketamine in other neurological and psychiatric disorders, the patient underwent a series of IV ketamine infusions over a period of two months.

From Wheelchair Bound to Working: A Case Study of Intravenous Ketamine Infusions in Treating Stiff Person Syndrome.

Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS) is a rare autoimmune condition marked by extremely painful muscle spasms, stiffness, and rigidity throughout the body. Its rarity often translates to limited treatment options for patients and, occasionally, challenges in obtaining a definitive diagnosis. SPS also impacts patients' mental health, social and economic involvement, and overall quality of life.

Persistent air leak treated by autologous blood patch pleurodesis: the role of CT-guided small-bore chest tube insertion.

Autologous blood patch pleurodesis (ABPP) offers an alternative to surgery when conservative management is ineffective for treating a persistent air leak (PAL). In the traditional technique, autologous venous blood is introduced into the affected pleural cavity via a blindly inserted large-bore surgical chest tube. Herein, we present a case of an 18 year old male with a PAL following video assisted thorascopic bleb resection and talc pleurodesis who underwent successful ABPP using a small-bore pigtail catheter placed under computed tomography (CT) guidance.

Low-Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound Therapy for a Symptomatic Persistent Olecranon Physis in an Adolescent Baseball Pitcher.

A 15-year-old competitive right-handed high school baseball pitcher experienced an acute onset of right elbow pain when throwing. He initially treated it conservatively with rest alone for 3 months, but on return to throwing, he was still experiencing pain. Radiographs revealed that he had a persistent olecranon physis.

Effects of Intravenous Ketamine Infusions in a Neuropathic Pain Patient with Lichen Sclerosus et Atrophicus.

A patient reported to the Florida Spine Institute (Clearwater, Fla., USA) with severe lichen sclerosus of the anogenital region and legs. The patient's pain presentation was neuropathic with hypersensitivity, allodynia, swelling, and weakness.

Adult degenerative scoliosis treated with XLIF: clinical and radiographical results of a prospective multicenter study with 24-month follow-up.

Study Design: Prospective, multicenter, single-arm study.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographical results of patients undergoing extreme lateral interbody fusion (XLIF), a minimally disruptive lateral transpsoas retroperitoneal surgical approach for the treatment of degenerative scoliosis (DS).

Summary Of Background Data: Surgery for the treatment of DS has been reported to have acceptable results but is traditionally associated with high morbidity and complication rates.

L5 - s1 segmental kinematics after facet arthroplasty.

Background: Facet arthroplasty is a motion restoring procedure. It is normally suggested as an alternative to rigid fixation after destabilizing decompression procedures in the posterior lumbar spine. While previous studies have reported successful results in reproducing normal spine kinematics after facet replacement at L4-5 and L3-4, there are no data on the viability of facet replacement at the lumbosacral joint.

Ultrasound-guided trigger point injections in the cervicothoracic musculature: a new and unreported technique.

Background: Myofascial pain is defined as pain that originates from myofascial trigger points in skeletal muscle. It is prevalent in regional musculoskeletal pain syndromes, either alone or in combination with other pain generators. The myofascial pain syndrome is one of the largest groups of under diagnosed and under treated medical problems encountered in clinical practice.

Fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural steroid injections in degenerative lumbar spine stenosis.

Background: Caudal epidural steroid injections are commonly utilized to help reduce radicular pain in lumbar spinal stenosis. There have been studies done to evaluate the effectiveness of this procedure non-fluoroscopically guided. Search revealed no prospective studies evaluating the effectiveness of fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural injections on patients with bilateral radicular pain from degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis.

Radiation exposure to the physician performing fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural steroid injections.

This study was designed to investigate radiation exposure to a physician performing fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural steroid injections. The prospective study design included 100 consecutive fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural steroid injections performed on patients with radiculitis from either herniated nucleus pulposus or lumbar spinal stenosis. Radiation exposure was monitored with the assistance of a radiological technologist (RT) who allocated four dosimetry badges to all physicians performing fluoroscopically guided caudal epidural steroid injections on consecutive patients being treated for radicular pain.

Radiation exposure to the spinal interventionalist performing lumbar discography.

To evaluate radiation exposure to the spinal interventionalist performing lumbar discography. A prospective study on four spinal interventionalists who performed 106 consecutive lumbar discograms (levels) on 37 patients with low back pain. Radiation exposure was monitored with the assistance of a radiological technologist (RT) who allocated four (4) dosimetry badges to all spinal interventionalists performing Discograms on consecutive patients being referred for evaluation of possible discogenic pain.

Fluoroscopic guided lumbar interlaminar epidural injections: a prospective evaluation of epidurography contrast patterns and anatomical review of the epidural space.

Objective: To evaluate the pattern and flow of epidural contrast in fluoroscopically guided lumbar interlaminar steroid injections.

Design And Methods: A prospective case series of 25 (twenty-five) consecutive patients receiving 25 (twenty-five) injections. Patients had either lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) or herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP).

Candida spondylodiscitis: an unusual case of thoracolumbar pain with review of imaging findings and description of the clinical condition.

Spondylodiscitis is an unusual but important cause of back pain. Patients with spinal infections typically present with severe sharp aching pain, malaise, fever, and percussion tenderness over the affected area. Early identification of the responsible organism is essential for adequate and prompt treatment.

Epidurography contrast patterns with fluoroscopic guided lumbar transforaminal epidural injections:a prospective evaluation.

Background: Lumbar transforaminal epidural injections have been utilized in the treatment of radicular pain with proven success. It was postulated that interlaminar epidural injections result in a dorsal flow of contrast while transforaminal epidural steroid injections showed good ventral flow limited to one single spinal motion segment. There have been no published studies evaluating epidurography/contrast patterns utilizing fluoroscopy.

Adverse effects of fluoroscopically guided interlaminar thoracic epidural steroid injections.

Objectives: To assess the prevalence of adverse effects or complications from fluoroscopically guided thoracic interlaminar epidural steroid injections.

Design: A retrospective study with independent observer review. Patients presenting with thoracic radicular pain, caused by either herniated nucleus pulposus or thoracic spondylosis as confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging, received an interlaminar thoracic epidural steroid injection as part of a conservative-care treatment plan.

Epidural steroid injections in the treatment of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis associated with epidural lipomatosis.

Epidural lipomatosis has been implicated as a cause or contributor of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis. Although epidural steroid injections have been very successful for symptomatic treatment of spinal stenosis; their role in treatment of symptomatic stenosis secondary to epidural lipomatosis is unclear. A review literature (MEDLINE, PubMed) found no reports justifying the use of steroids.

Microendoscopic discectomy for recurrent disc herniations.

Object: The use of microendoscopic discectomy (MED) for the treatment of primary lumbar disc herniations has become fairly well accepted; its role in recurrent disc herniations is less clear. The reluctance of many surgeons to use this technique stems, in part, from the concern of undertaking an endoscopic discectomy in a patient in whom the anatomy is distorted from a previous operation. It appears counterintuitive to operate through a limited working area when the traditional open approach for recurrence favors wider exposure of the surgical field.

The progressive roles of electronic medicine: benefits, concerns, and costs.

Electronic healthcare will significantly alter the way physicians practice medicine. Electronic medical records with specialized software programs can increase the quality of patient care, reduce unnecessary medical tests, and directly connect with pharmacies to transmit prescriptions. Electronic communication can allow physicians to respond to patients' clinical concerns and questions, and Internet access can provide physicians better access to literature.

Chronic non-malignant musculoskeletal pain in older adults: clinical issues and opioid intervention.

Musculoskeletal pain is common, frequently under-reported, and inadequately treated in the older adult. The objective of this article is to review the management of musculoskeletal pain syndromes in older adults emphasising the potential role of opioid agents in carefully selected patients. Systematic analysis of the relevant literature was done.

Complications of fluoroscopically guided interlaminar cervical epidural injections.

Objectives: To assess the incidence of complications of fluoroscopically guided interlaminar cervical epidural injections.

Design: A retrospective cohort design study.

Setting: A multidisciplinary spine care center.

Lumbar epidural steroid injections in the patient with lumbar spinal stenosis.

Epidural steroid injections seem to be a useful component of a comprehensive and functionally oriented rehabilitation program for the patient with LSS. Review of the literature indicates the injections seem to be effective and are safe when performed with proper technique.

Manual therapy for lumbar spinal stenosis: a comprehensive physical therapy approach.

A physical therapy approach to lumbar spinal stenosis involves techniques directed at opening up the neurovascular spaces in the lumbar spine to reduce the stenosis. This entails manual therapy techniques for improving intervertebral motion, regaining neural mobility, and restoring muscle function, followed by an active exercise program that often involves flexion exercises. Techniques for unloading the spine and patient education are included in this physical therapy approach.

Lumbar spinal stenosis: anatomy and pathogenesis.

This article reviews the history, classification, and pathoanatomy of lumbar spinal stenosis. An understanding of the pathoanatomy of lumbar spinal stenosis is essential for the clinician to treat the patient with clinically symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis more effectively.

Fluoroscopically guided lumbar transformational epidural steroid injections in degenerative lumbar stenosis: an outcome study.

Objective: To identify the short- and long-term therapeutic benefit of fluoroscopically guided lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections in patients with radicular leg pain from degenerative lumbar stenosis.

Design: This prospective cohort study performed at a multidisciplinary spine center. There were a total of 34 patients who met our inclusion criteria for the treatment of unilateral radicular pain from degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis who underwent fluoroscopically guided lumbar transforaminal epidural injections.