Stereotactic and functional neurosurgery
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Stereotact Funct Neurosurg · Jan 2008
ReviewA comprehensive review of radiosurgery for cerebral arteriovenous malformations: outcomes, predictive factors, and grading scales.
The management of cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) continues to present a challenge to neurosurgeons. The natural history of this condition, as well as the morbidity and mortality of therapeutic interventions, remains incompletely elucidated. Predictive factors and grading scales in AVM management allow risk-benefit analysis of treatment options and comparison of outcomes. ⋯ Lesion characteristics and postsurgical complications differ markedly in patientstreated by radiosurgery versus microsurgery. Radiosurgery-based grading systems account for factors that have been associated with various aspects of radiosurgical outcomes including obliteration, hemorrhage, and postoperative complications, particularly those induced by radiation. The purpose of this paper is to describe the most current predictive factors and grading systems for radiosurgical treatment of cerebral AVMs.
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Stereotact Funct Neurosurg · Jan 2008
ReviewReview of the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia with gamma knife radiosurgery.
Trigeminal neuralgia is a debilitating condition caused by compression of the trigeminal nerve, ganglions, or divisions. Gamma knife radiosurgery has been increasingly used in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia as a non-invasive alternative to microvascular decompression and rhizotomies. ⋯ The growing body of literature suggests that the low rates of complications of gamma knife radiosurgery, coupled with the high success rates and patient satisfaction, allow it to be increasingly used as primary intervention for trigeminal neuralgia for appropriate patients.