Treatment of primary trigeminal neuralgia with gamma knife / 中国综合临床

Objective To evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of gamma knife in treatment of primary trigeminal neuralgia Methods Retrospectively analysis of 120 cases with primary trigeminal neuralgia treated by gamma knife in our department From Jan. 2003 to Mar. 2008 were performed. All cases were treated with the 4 mm collimator and targeted at the proximal nerve at the root entry zone located by MRI. The target dose varied from 80 -90 Gy. Results After a follow-up of 20. 0 ±4. 5 months, complete relief of pain occurred in 69 patients (57. 5%), 50% -90% relief in 34 (28. 3%), relief less than 50% in 12(10.0%) but no relief in 5(4.2 %).The efficient rate was 95. 8% . The common complications include numbness, absence of corneal reflex. 83 patients (69. 2%) experienced temporal facial numbness and 14 patients (11. 7%) reported continuous numbness after treatment of the gamma knife. Conclusions Gamma knife radiosurgery is a minimally invasive technique for the treatment of primary trigeminal neuralgia with few complications.

Clinical effect of stereotactic radiotherapy for lung cancer with superior vena cava syndrome / 解放军医学杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinical effect of stereotactic radiotherapy in the treatment of lung cancer with superior vena cava syndrome (SVCS). Methods 31 cases of lung cancer with SVCS were treated with body gamma knife. Among them, the diagnosis was confirmed by pathological diagnosis in 17 patients, and right lung cancer was diagnosed by CT-scan and clinical examinations without pathological diagnosis in 14 patients. Clinical manifestations included edema of the face, neck and chest (31 cases), chest pain and difficulty in respiration (30 cases), dyspnea (23 cases), and varicosity over the chest wall (1 case). 29 patients were followed-up till death after treatment, with the follow-up time ranging from 2 to 20 months, and both clinical signs and radiological changes before and after the treatment were compared. Results Clinical symptoms and signs of these 31 patients were significantly improved after the treatment. The overall effective rate was 100% (CR 8 and PR 21) and the median remission time was 8.3 months. The longest survival time reached 19 months after the therapy. Conclusion Stereotactic radiotherapy seems to be a safe and effective treatment for patients with SVCS with a satisfactory response rate, short treatment period and long remission time.