Journal of neurosurgery. Spine
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Malignant primary osseous spinal neoplasms are aggressive tumors that remain associated with poor outcomes despite aggressive multidisciplinary treatment measures. To date, prognosis for patients with these tumors is based on results from small single-center patient series and controlled trials. Large population-based observational studies are lacking. To assess national trends in histology-specific survival, the authors reviewed patient survival data spanning 30 years (1973-2003) from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry, a US population-based cancer registry. ⋯ In this analysis of a 30-year, US population-based cancer registry (SEER), the authors provide nationally representative prognosis and survival data for patients with malignant primary spinal osseous neoplasms. Overall patient survival has improved for isolated spine tumors with advancements in care over the past 4 decades. These results may be helpful in providing historical controls for understanding the efficacy of new treatment paradigms, patient education, and guiding level of aggressiveness in treatment strategies.
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Case Reports
Lumbar artery pseudoaneurysm after percutaneous vertebroplasty: a unique vascular complication.
Complications from percutaneous vertebroplasty (PV) and kyphoplasty are rare and are most commonly related to cement leakage. Pseudoaneurysm of the segmental arteries has not been reported as a complication of PV in the literature. In this article, the authors describe 2 patients who presented with a lumbar pseudoaneurysm after undergoing PV at other institutions. The authors also review the optimal technique to avoid such vascular complications.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of MR imaging and FDG-PET/CT in the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant vertebral compression fractures.
Differentiation between malignant and benign vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) is important but sometimes difficult, especially in elderly cancer patients. The authors investigated the findings of MR imaging and FDG-PET/CT for the differentiation of VCFs. ⋯ When MR imaging findings are equivocal, FDG-PET/CT can be considered as an adjunctive diagnostic method for differentiating malignant from benign VCFs. In comparison with MR imaging, FDG-PET/CT showed slightly higher sensitivity and lower specificity.
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Case Reports
Transarticular screw fixation of C1-2 for the treatment of arthropathy-associated occipital neuralgia.
Two patients with occipital neuralgia due to severe arthropathy of the C1-2 facet joint were treated using atlantoaxial fusion with transarticular screws without decompression of the C-2 nerve root. Both patients experienced immediate postoperative relief of occipital neuralgia. ⋯ A possible pathophysiological explanation for this improvement is presented in the context of the ignition theory of neuralgic pain. This represents the first report of C1-2 transarticular screw fixation for the treatment of arthropathy-associated occipital neuralgia.
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The minimally invasive lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas approach is increasingly used to treat various spinal disorders. Accessing the retroperitoneal space and traversing the abdominal wall poses a risk of injury to the major nervous structures and adds significant morbidity to the procedure. Most of the current literature focuses on the anatomy of the lumbar plexus within the substance of the psoas muscle. However, there is sparse knowledge regarding the trajectory of the lumbar plexus nerves that travel along the retroperitoneum and abdominal wall muscles in relation to the lateral approach to the spine. The objective of this study is to define the anatomical trajectories of the major motor and sensory branches of the lumbar plexus that are located outside the psoas muscle. ⋯ There is risk of direct injury to the main motor/sensory nerves that supply the anterior abdominal muscles during the early stages of the lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas approach while obtaining access to the retroperitoneum. There is also a risk of injury to the ilioinguinal, iliohypogastric, and lateral femoral cutaneous nerves in the retroperitoneal space where they travel obliquely during the blunt retroperitoneal dissection. Moreover, there is a latent possibility of lesioning these nerves with the retractor blades against the anterior iliac crest.