Clinical Studies of the Occipital Bone Fracture

In the past the patients with fracture on the occipital bone involved the lateral sinus and/or the foramen magnum, were treated with the early exploratory burr hole trephination regardless of mental state. The 64 cases occipital bone fracture were evaluated used the computed tomography of the brain scan. The fracture lines involved both the transeverse sinus and the foramen magnum were 59.4%, only the transeverse sinus were 29.7% and only the foramen magnum were 10.9%. The findings of the computed tomography of the brain scan were normal 42 cases, brain edema 13 cases. The 5 cases had large hematoma on the computed tomography of the brain scan performed emergency operation. The other 59 cases were treated with only close observation and conservative treatment. The mortality rate was 20% in operative treatment and 8.5% in conservative treatment. So we concluded that the patients with significant fracture on the occipital bone but had no surgical indication on the computed tomography of the brain scan might be treated with close observation & conservative treatment and it would not be necessary to perform the exploratory craniotomy as was done in the past.

A Case of Dermoid in the Thoracolumbar Region

Dermoid and epidermoid of the spinal cord are rare and their percentage was 2.6% of spinal cord tumors. In dermoid average age of occurrence is 28.3 years. They are dysembryonic malformations. Dermoid consists of desquamated material, sebaceous material and hairs. The region of preference is lumbosacral spinal cords, especially cauda equina and conus medullaris. We are reporting a case of dermoid which has taken intracapsular enucleation and discuss about the epidemiology and pathogenesis.