Roadmapping technique in the hybrid operating room for the microsurgical treatment of complex intracranial aneurysms

Objective@#To describe the roadmapping technique and our three-year experience in the management of intracranial aneurysms in the hybrid operating room. @*Methods@#We analyzed all patients who underwent surgical clipping for cerebral aneurysms with the roadmapping technique from January 2017 to September 2019. We report demographic, clinical, and morphological variables, as well as clinical and radiological outcomes. We further describe three illustrative cases of the technique. @*Results@#A total of 13 patients were included, 9 of which (69.2%) presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage, with a total of 23 treated aneurysms. All patients were female, with a mean age of 47.7 years (range 31-63). All cases were anterior circulation aneurysms, the most frequent location being the ophthalmic segment of the internal carotid artery (ICA) in 11 cases (48%), followed by posterior communicating in 8 (36%), and ICA bifurcation in 2 (8%). Intraoperative clip repositioning was required in 9 aneurysms (36%) as a result of the roadmapping technique in the hybrid operating room. There were no residual aneurysms in our series, nor reported mortality. @*Conclusions@#The roadmapping technique in the hybrid operating room offers a complementary tool for the adequate occlusion of complex intracranial aneurysms, as it provides a real time fluoroscopic-guided clipping technique, and clip repositioning is possible in a single surgical stage, whenever a residual portion of the aneurysm is identified. This technique also provides some advantages, such as immediate vasospasm identification and treatment with intra-arterial vasodilators, balloon proximal control for certain paraclinoid aneurysms, and simultaneous endovascular treatment in selected cases during a single stage.

Operative Technique for En Bloc Resection of Upper Cervical Chordomas: Extended Transoral Transmandibular Approach and Multilevel Reconstruction

Anterior exposure for cervical chordomas remains challenging because of the anatomical complexities and the restoration of the dimensional balance of the atlanto-axial region. In this report, we describe and analyze the transmandibular transoral approach and multilevel spinal reconstruction for upper cervical chordomas. We report two cases of cervical chordomas (C2 and C2-C4) that were treated by marginal en bloc resection with a transmandibular approach and anterior-posterior multilevel spinal reconstruction/fixation. Both patients showed clinical improvement. Postoperative imaging was negative for any residual tumor and revealed adequate reconstruction and stabilization. Marginal resection requires more extensive exposure to allow the surgeon access to the entire pathology, as an inadequate tumor margin is the main factor that negatively affects the prognosis. Anterior and posterior reconstruction provides a rigid reconstruction that protects the medulla and decreases axial pain by properly stabilizing the cervical spine.