Neurosurgery
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Brain tumors have a poor prognosis and a high death rate. Sufficient aftercare is necessary to enhance patient results. But follow-up care provision is fraught with difficulties in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where a variety of variables can impede access to care. Therefore, our systematic review aimed to identify challenges to follow-up care for brain tumors and possible solutions in LMICs. ⋯ In LMICs, several issues pertaining to personnel, infrastructure, service delivery, financing, information management, and governance impede the provision of follow-up treatment for patients with brain tumors. As established by the suggested techniques found in the literature, addressing these issues will necessitate concurrent action by stakeholders, legislators, health ministries, and government agencies.
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Multicenter Study
Pleomorphic Xanthoastrocytoma: Multi-Institutional Evaluation of Stereotactic Radiosurgery.
Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma (PXA) is a rare low-grade glial tumor primarily affecting young individuals. Surgery is the primary treatment option; however, managing residual/recurrent tumors remains uncertain. This international multi-institutional study retrospectively assessed the use of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for PXA. ⋯ SRS offers promising outcomes for PXA management, providing effective LC, reasonable progression-free survival, and minimal adverse events.
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Multicenter Study
Gamma Knife Radiosurgery for Hypothalamic Hamartoma: A Multi-Institutional Retrospective Study on Safety, Efficacy, and Complication Profile.
Gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) is a safe and effective treatment option for hypothalamic hamartomas (HH), but there is no consensus opinion on its timing, dosage, and follow-up. The aim of this study was to define the safety, efficacy, outcome, and complication profile of GKRS in this patient population. ⋯ GKRS is a safe and effective modality for treatment of HH with significant improvement in seizure control with minimal disruption of endocrine profile. It provides an excellent safety, efficacy, and complication profile, especially for small HH. Latency of results and its adjuvant nature remain the areas of research and breakthroughs among contemporary treatment options.
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Consensus guidelines do not exist to guide the role of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in the management of patients with Spetzler-Martin Grade III-V arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). We sought to establish SRS practice guidelines for Grade III-V AVMs based on a critical systematic review of the published literature. ⋯ Most patients with Spetzler-Martin Grade III AVMs have favorable SRS treatment outcomes; however, the obliteration rate for Grade IV-V AVMs is less than 50%. The available studies are heterogenous and lack nuanced, long-term, grade-specific outcomes.