Neurosurgery
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There are few studies comparing the economic costs and reimbursements for aneurysm clipping versus coiling, and none are from the United States. Our hypothesis predicted that coiling would result in shorter lengths of hospitalization than clipping in patients with unruptured aneurysms and would therefore result in lower hospital charges. However, because of the severity of subarachnoid hemorrhage, there would be no difference in length of hospitalization or hospital charges in patients with ruptured aneurysms. ⋯ Despite a shorter length of hospitalization in patients with unruptured aneurysms, coiling was associated with higher hospital costs in both patients with unruptured and ruptured aneurysms. This is likely attributable to the higher device cost of coils than clips. The advantages of coiling over clipping would be better realized if the cost of coils could be comparably reduced to that of clips.
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Comparative Study
Comparative risk of leptomeningeal dissemination of cancer after surgery or stereotactic radiosurgery for a single supratentorial solid tumor metastasis.
To test the hypothesis that differential risks of developing leptomeningeal disease (LMD) exist in patients having a single supratentorial brain metastasis resected via a piecemeal or en bloc approach or treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). ⋯ Piecemeal resection of a supratentorial brain metastasis carries a higher risk of LMD than en bloc resection or SRS. Further assessment of the role of the 2 surgical resection approaches and SRS in a controlled prospective setting with large numbers of patients is warranted.
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Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is used to assess language laterality in preoperative brain tumor patients. In postsurgical patients, susceptibility artifacts can potentially alter ipsilateral fMRI activation volumes and the assessment of language laterality. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of fMRI to correctly measure language dominance in brain tumor patients with previous surgery because this patient cohort is vulnerable to type II statistical errors and subsequent misjudgment of laterality. ⋯ fMRI mapping of eloquent language cortices in brain tumor patients after surgery is feasible and can serve as a useful baseline evaluation for preoperative neurosurgical planning. However, findings should be interpreted with caution in the presence of postsurgical artifacts.
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Clinical Trial
Curative endovascular reconstruction of cerebral aneurysms with the pipeline embolization device: the Buenos Aires experience.
The Pipeline embolization device (PED) (Chestnut Medical Technologies, Inc., Menlo Park, CA) is a new microcatheter-delivered endovascular construct designed to achieve the curative reconstruction of the parent arteries giving rise to wide-necked and fusiform intracranial aneurysms. We present our initial periprocedural experience with the PED and midterm follow-up results for a series of 53 patients. ⋯ Endovascular reconstruction with the PED represents a safe, durable, and curative treatment of selected wide-necked, large and giant cerebral aneurysms. The rate of complete occlusion at the time of the 12-month follow-up examination approached 100% in the present study. To date, no angiographic recurrences have been observed during serial angiographic follow-up.
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Patients with partial or complete bilateral vertebral artery occlusion often present with signs and symptoms of transient ischemic attacks or infarction. Advances in phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging have led to noninvasive assessment of volumetric blood flow rates and direction that help in the workup and management of these patients. ⋯ This case illustrates the potential of QMRA as part of a comprehensive cerebrovascular assessment, operative planning, and follow-up of patients with vertebrobasilar insufficiency.