ABSTRACT
This study aimed to report a rare case of occipital aneurysmal bone cysts [ABCs] in an adult patient. ABCs account for 1% of primary bone tumors. They are usually seen in pediatric age and rare in adults. They are benign fibro-osseous lesions, but they also tend to double in size rapidly and destruct the morphology of the bone. They have a tendency to extend to the long bones and vertebral column. The calvarial ABCs are 3%-6% of ABC. They usually affect the frontal and temporal bones of the skull, and cranial nerve findings are frequently seen. In the adulthood, occipital ABCs are extremely rare. Sixteen cases of occipital ABC, average age 15 years, have been reported in the literature. A 50-year-old female patient was admitted to the clinic with the history of an occipital mass lesion, which had been growing for 6 months. Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography of the cranium revealed an irregular-shaped destructive lesion of 55 × 18 × 28 mm3 in the diploe part of the occipital bone. The mass with an approximately 6 cm radius, and 1 cm normal bone edge was completely excised. Because of total resection, no adjuvant therapy was performed. Neither recurrence nor residual lesion was observed in the postoperative 24 months
ABSTRACT
To evaluate blood and serum markers in traumatic spinal cord injured [SCI] patients, with and without pressure sores. This cross-sectional study was performed at the Ministry of Health Diskapi Yildirim Beyazit, and Numune Education and Research Hospitals, Ankara, Turkey, from 2006-2008. A total of 23 SCI patients with pressure sores [group I] and a control group of 25 SCI patients without pressure sores [group II] were evaluated. Characteristics of sores were examined with respect to duration, location, grade, tissue types, surface area, and exudate amount. Recorded laboratory parameters included erythrocyte sedimentation rates [ESR], C-reactive protein [CRP], hemoglobin [Hb], hematocrit [Htc], lymphocytes, white blood cells [WBC], red blood cells [RBC], serum iron, transferrin, total iron-binding capacity [TIBC], ferritin, total protein, albumin, vitamin B12, and zinc. The most common pressure sore location was the sacrum [38%]. Compared to the control group, the patients with pressure sores showed anemia with reduced serum iron, transferrin, TIBC, and increased ferritin. They also had increased ESR, CRP, and WBC and reduced lymphocytes, total protein, albumin and zinc. Statistically significant correlations were found between CRP, Hb, Htc, lymphocytes, RBC, WBC, and serum protein levels, and grade of pressure sores. Clinicians should regularly screen patients with respect to blood and serum markers, in order to determine any risks for pressure sores, and they should perform immediate preventive measures based on the patient's condition