Neurocritical care
-
The importance of preoperative response to external ventricular drainage (EVD) for treatment of acute hydrocephalus (HCP) following poor grade (Hunt & Hess grade IV or V) aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) has not been clearly defined. The effect of EVD response on preoperative grade and prognosis is described. ⋯ Long-term outcomes in poor grade patients who improve after EVD placement are similar to patients with lower grade hemorrhages. When an EVD is placed preoperatively in a poor grade aSAH patient, the neurological status after EVD determines the clinical grade.
-
Recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa, NovoSeven, NovoNordisc, Danemark) has been approved for the treatment of patients with hemophilia with inhibitors, further indications, at least in some countries, include the treatment of factor VII deficiency and Glanzmann thrombasthenia refractory to conventional therapy. Apart from these indications, the agent is increasingly used for the treatment of severe and potentially life-threatening bleeding manifestations, irrespective of the underlying hemostatic abnormality. The agent has successfully been used for the treatment of both inherited and acquired coagulopathies as well as thrombocytopathia or thrombocytopenia, however, most information on off-label use derives from case reports and retrospective studies and therefore publication bias can-not be excluded. ⋯ We review the current knowledge regarding the physiology of hemostasis, the pharmacology of rFVIIa, and its clinical use in neurosciences. Further studies are urgently needed to define the efficacy and safety of recombinant activated factor VII in patients without hemophilia, factor VII deficiency, or Glanzmann thrombasthenia. At time, its use can be justified in life-threatening bleeding situations refractory to conventional treatment.
-
The computed tomography (CT) appearance of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) without subarachnoid blood has been labeled "pseudo-subarachnoid hemorrhage" (pseudo-SAH) and has been reported with several diffuse intracerebral insults including intrathecal contrast agents, meningitis, generalized cerebral edema, anoxic encephalopathy, and intracranial hypotension. ⋯ Our case suggests that PICA infarction can be associated with the CT finding of pseudo-SAH, thereby mimicking the clinical and radiographic presentation of SAH.
-
Case Reports
Isolated third nerve palsy associated with a ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm.
An oculomotor palsy in the setting of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage is often due to compression by a posterior communicating artery aneurysm. Anterior communicating artery (ACOM) aneurysms may produce ophthalmologic symptoms of the anterior visual pathways, but rarely ever lead to a 3rd nerve palsy. This report describes a rare case of an isolated oculomotor palsy in a patient who experienced subarachnoid hemorrhage from an ACOM aneurysm. ⋯ In very rare circumstances, an ACOM aneurysm may produce an isolated third nerve palsy. The etiology of the palsy is likely related to clot formation and/or irritating blood products.
-
The crucial importance of monitoring both the infarcted and non-infarcted hemispheres in management of space occupying middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction is increasingly recognized, but optimal technique is debated. We investigated the potential for bilateral Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) to non-invasively provide relevant information on intracranial oxygenation. ⋯ Bilateral NIRS may provide more useful information on cerebral oxygenation than unilateral measurements and its clinical validity to help predict worsening of brain swelling should be investigated further.