Journal of neurosurgery
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The objective was to assess the performance of a context-enriched large language model (LLM) compared with international neurosurgical experts on questions related to the management of vestibular schwannoma. Furthermore, another objective was to develop a chat-based platform incorporating in-text citations, references, and memory to enable accurate, relevant, and reliable information in real time. ⋯ The present study, with its subspecialist-level performance in generating written responses to complex neurosurgical problems for which evidence-based consensus for management is lacking, suggests that context-enriched LLMs show promise as a point-of-care medical resource. The authors anticipate that this work will be a springboard for expansion into more medical specialties, incorporating evidence-based clinical information and developing expert-level dialogue surrounding LLMs in healthcare.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Apr 2024
Association of persistent postoperative hyperglycemia with mortality after elective craniotomy.
The influence of persistent postoperative hyperglycemia after craniotomy has not yet been explored. This study aimed to investigate the hypothesis that persistent postoperative hyperglycemia is associated with mortality in patients undergoing an elective craniotomy. ⋯ In patients undergoing an elective craniotomy, moderate and severe persistent postoperative hyperglycemia were associated with an increased risk of mortality compared with normoglycemia, regardless of preoperative hyperglycemia.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Apr 2024
Risk Analysis Index as a preoperative frailty tool for elective ventriculoperitoneal shunt surgery for idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus.
Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) predominantly occurs in older patients, and ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) placement is the definitive surgical treatment. VPS surgery carries significant postoperative complication rates, which may tip the risk/benefit balance of this treatment option for frail, or higher-risk, patients. In this study, the authors investigated the use of frailty scoring for preoperative risk stratification for adverse event prediction in iNPH patients who underwent elective VPS placement. ⋯ In a nationwide database analysis, increasing frailty, as measured by RAI, was associated with NHD, 30-day mortality, unplanned readmission, eLOS, and postoperative complications. Although the RAI outperformed the mFI-5, it is essential to account for the potentially reversible clinical issues related to the underlying disease process, as these factors may inflate frailty scores, assign undue risk, and diminish their utility. This knowledge may enhance provider understanding of the impact of frailty on postoperative outcomes for patients with iNPH, while highlighting the potential constraints associated with frailty assessment tools.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Apr 2024
Monopolar stereoelectroencephalography-guided radiofrequency thermocoagulation.
Stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG)-guided radiofrequency thermocoagulation (RFTC) has the advantage of producing a lesion in the epileptogenic zone (EZ) at the end of SEEG. The majority of published SEEG-guided RFTCs have been bipolar and usually performed between contiguous contacts of the same electrode. In the present study, the authors evaluate the safety, efficacy, and benefits of monopolar RFTC at the end of SEEG. ⋯ The use of monopolar SEEG-guided RFTC provides more freedom in terms of choosing the SEEG contacts for thermocoagulation and a larger thermolesion volume. Monopolar thermocoagulation seems particularly beneficial in cases with an insular EZ, in which vascular constraints could be partially avoided by making noncontiguous lesions within the EZ.
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Journal of neurosurgery · Apr 2024
Quantitative noninvasive measurement of cerebrospinal fluid flow in shunted hydrocephalus.
Standard MRI protocols lack a quantitative sequence that can be used to evaluate shunt-treated patients with a history of hydrocephalus. The objective of this study was to investigate the use of phase-contrast MRI (PC-MRI), a quantitative MR sequence, to measure CSF flow through the shunt and demonstrate PC-MRI as a useful adjunct in the clinical monitoring of shunt-treated patients. ⋯ The PC-MRI sequence provided accurate and reliable clinical measurements of CSF flow in shunt-treated patients. This work provides the necessary framework to include PC-MRI as an immediate addition to the clinical setting in the noninvasive evaluation of shunt function and in future clinical investigations of CSF physiology.