Handbook of clinical neurology
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The end-of-life (EOL) phase of patients with a glioma starts when symptom prevalence increases and antitumor treatment is no longer effective. During the EOL phase, care is primarily aimed at reducing symptom burden while maintaining quality of life as long as possible without inappropriate prolongation of life. Palliative care during the EOL phase also involves complex medical decisions for the prevention and relief of suffering. ⋯ Treating disease-specific symptoms, such as impaired consciousness, seizures, focal neurologic deficits and cognitive disturbances, is a major concern during the EOL phase, as these symptoms may interfere with EOL decision making. Advance care planning is aimed at reaching consensus about possible EOL decisions between all participants, respecting the values of patients and their informal caregivers. In order to prevent the possibility that the patient becomes incompetent to make informed decisions, we recommend initiating EOL conversations at a relatively early stage in the disease course.
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Primary or nontraumatic spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) accounts for 10-15% of all strokes, and has a poor prognosis. ICH has a mortality rate of almost 50% when associated with intraventricular hemorrhage within the first month, and 80% rate of dependency at 6 months from onset. Neuroimaging is critical in identifying the underlying etiology and thus assisting in the important therapeutic decisions. ⋯ A review of the current imaging approach, as well as a differential diagnosis of etiologies and imaging manifestations of primary versus secondary intraparenchymal hemorrhage, is presented. Active bleeding occurs in the first hours after symptom onset, with early neurologic deterioration. Identifying those patients who are more likely to have hematoma expansion is an active area of research, and there are many ongoing therapeutic trials targeting this specific patient population at risk.
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Seizures are common in patients with brain tumors, and epilepsy can significantly impact patient quality of life. Therefore, a thorough understanding of rates and predictors of seizures, and the likelihood of seizure freedom after resection, is critical in the treatment of brain tumors. Among all tumor types, seizures are most common with glioneuronal tumors (70-80%), particularly in patients with frontotemporal or insular lesions. ⋯ With regard to anticonvulsant medication selection, evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of focal epilepsy should be followed, and individual patient factors should also be considered, including patient age, sex, organ dysfunction, comorbidity, or cotherapy. As concomitant chemotherapy commonly forms an essential part of glioma treatment, enzyme-inducing anticonvulsants should be avoided when possible. Seizure freedom is the ultimate goal in the treatment of brain tumor patients with epilepsy, given the adverse effects of seizures on quality of life.
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Traumatic brain and spine injury (TBI/TSI) is a leading cause of death and lifelong disability in children. The biomechanical properties of the child's brain, skull, and spine, the size of the child, the age-specific activity pattern, and variance in trauma mechanisms result in a wide range of age-specific traumas and patterns of brain and spine injuries. A detailed knowledge about the various types of primary and secondary pediatric head and spine injuries is essential to better identify and understand pediatric TBI/TSI, which enhances sensitivity and specificity of diagnosis, will guide therapy, and may give important information about the prognosis. The purposes of this chapter are to: (1) discuss the unique epidemiology, mechanisms, and characteristics of TBI/TSI in children; (2) review the anatomic and functional imaging techniques that can be used to study common and rare pediatric TBI/TSI and their complications; (3) comprehensively review frequent primary and secondary brain injuries; and (4) to give a short overview of two special types of pediatric TBI/TSI: birth-related and nonaccidental injuries.
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Interest in malingering has grown in recent years, and is reflected in the exponential increase in academic publications since 1990. Although malingering is more commonly detected in medicolegal practice, it is not an all-or-nothing presentation and moreover can vary in the extent of presentation. As a nonmedical disorder, the challenge for clinical practice remains that malingering by definition is intentional and deliberate. ⋯ Factitious disorders are rare in clinical practice and their detection depends largely on the level of clinical suspicion supported by the systematic collection of relevant information from a variety of sources. In this chapter we challenge the accepted DSM-5 definition of factitious disorder and suggest that the traditional glossaries have neglected the extent to which a person's reported symptoms can be considered a product of intentional choice or selective psychopathology largely beyond the subject's voluntary control, or more likely, both. We present evidence to suggest that neurologists preferentially diagnose factitious presentations in healthcare workers as "hysterical," possibly to avoid the stigma of simulated illness.