Neurosurgery
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ULNAR NERVE INJURIES can be severely debilitating and result in weakness of wrist flexion, loss of hand intrinsic function, and ulnar-sided hand anesthesia. When these injuries produce a Sunderland fourth- or fifth-degree injury, surgical intervention is necessary for functional recovery. Traditional methods for restoring hand intrinsic function after ulnar nerve palsy include interposition nerve grafting for timely presentations or tendon transfers for either complex injuries or late presentations. ⋯ Several case reports have been published discussing the concept behind this approach, but none have outlined the specific steps involved in this operation. As such, this article discusses our operative methodology behind the distal median to ulnar neurotization, which includes a Guyon canal release, identification of donor median and recipient ulnar nerve fascicular anatomy within the forearm, and an operative tutorial on proper technique for neurotization to restore both ulnar motor and sensory function. We present the technical nuances of the following nerve transfers to restore ulnar nerve function within the hand: anterior interosseous nerve to deep motor branch of ulnar nerve, third webspace sensory contribution of median nerve to volar sensory component of ulnar nerve, and end-to-side reinnervation of ulnar dorsal cutaneous to the remaining median sensory trunk.
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This study assesses the safety, effectiveness, and practicality of endovascular therapy for ischemic stroke within the first 3 hours of symptom onset. ⋯ Endovascular therapy within the first 3 hours of stroke symptom onset in patients in whom IV tPA therapy is contraindicated or fails is safe, effective, and practical. The risk of symptomatic ICH is low and should be viewed relative to the poor prognosis in this group of patients.
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There is significant debate in the literature regarding the optimal management of patients with the diagnosis of a spinal epidural abscess (SEA). Although some have advocated conservative treatment with intravenous antibiotics alone in select patients, recent studies have shown that patients treated without early surgery are more likely to have poor outcomes. ⋯ Our data do not support the hypothesis that patients treated without early surgery are more likely to have a poor outcome. Furthermore, we propose that the anatomy of the SEA (ventral or dorsal) should play an important role in determining the treatment plan.
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Case Reports
Stent remodeling technique for coiling of ruptured wide-neck cerebral aneurysms: case report.
To describe a novel stent remodeling technique for the coiling of ruptured wide-neck cerebral aneurysms. ⋯ The stent remodeling technique is a novel endovascular technique that can be used to treat ruptured wide-neck aneurysms and maintain patency of parent vessels, avoiding the use of antiplatelet therapy in acute subarachnoid hemorrhage.
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Cerebral vasospasm is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) occurs. The haptoglobin 2-2 genotype likely increases the risk for developing posthemorrhagic vasospasm, but potential treatments for vasospasm have never been tested in an animal model of this genotype. We used the nitric oxide (NO) donor diethylenetriamine (DETA)/NO incorporated into ethylene/vinyl acetate (EVAc) polymers to evaluate the efficacy of controlled NO repletion in a haptoglobin 2-2 mouse basilar artery SAH model. ⋯ Treatment with controlled release of NO prevented posthemorrhagic vasospasm in haptoglobin 2-2 mice, and mitigated neurological deficits, suggesting that DETA/NO-EVAc would be an effective therapy in patients with a genotype that confers higher risk for vasospasm after SAH. In addition to smooth muscle relaxation, inhibition of leukocyte migration may contribute to the therapeutic mechanism of NO.