[A case of destructive cervical spondylarthropathy related to chronic dialysis]. / Krónikus dialízis kapcsán kialakult destruktív cervicalis spondylarthropathia esete.

A case of a 61-year-old male patient suffered chronic renal failure and dialysed for 23 years with destructive cervical spondylarthropathy is presented. The patient presented with sudden onset of cervical pain radiating into his shoulders without neurological deficits. CT and MRI of the cervical and thoracic spine revealed severe destructive changes and compressive fractures of C6 and C7 vertebrae which caused the narrowing of the nerve root canals at these levels. A 360-degree fixation was performed to treat the unstable fracture and the patient's pain (C6 and C7 corpectomy, autolog bone graft replacement of the two vertebral bodies, anterior plate fixation and posterior instrumentation with screws and rods). Postoperatively the patient had no significant pain, no neurological deficit and he was able to manage independent life himself. During the immediate follow-up CT of the neck showed the satisfactory position of the bone graft and the metal implantations. The 6 months follow-up CT revealed the anterior migration of the two screws from the Th1 vertebral body and 2 mm ventral elevation of the caudal end of the plate from the anterior surface of the Th1 vertebral body. The 1-year follow-up could not be performed because the patient died due to cardio-pulmonary insufficiency. This is the second Hungarian report of a chronic dialysis related severe spondylarthropathy which may cause pathologic fractures of the vertebral bodies. The typical radiological and histological findings are discussed. This disease affect patients' quality of life and the conservative treatment alone seems to be ineffective in most cases. Based on the literature and personal experiences, the authors suggest 360-degree fixation of the spine to provide sufficient stability for the vertebrae of "bad bone quality", and early mobilisation of the patient can be achieved.

[Vascular compression syndromes of the cranial nerves]. / Az agyidegek vascularis kompressziós szindrómál.

The blood vessels which are running nearby the cranial nerves and the brainstem can be elongated; curves and loops of the vessels may develop mostly due to the degenerative alterations of ageing and these vessels can compress the surrounding neural elements. The authors report a review of vascular compression syndromes based on the literature and their own experience. The typical clinical symptoms of the syndromes subserving the proper diagnosis, the pathomechanism, the significance of imaging especially the magnetic resonance angiography, the experience with the surgical technique of microvascular decompression which is the only causal treatment of the syndromes are discussed. In cases of non-responsible medical treatment the microvascular decompression should be the eligible treatment in certain syndromes (trigeminal and glossopharyngeal neuralgia, hemifacial spasm) for it is a highly effective and low risk method.

[Factors affecting the development of chronic hydrocephalus following subarachnoid hemorrhage, with special emphasis on the role of ventricular and lumbar drainage]. / A subarachnoidealis verzest követô krónikus hydrocephalus kialakulását befolyásoló tényezôk vizsgálata, különös tekintettel a kamrai és az ágyéki liquordrenázs szerepére.

Hydrocephalus is a common complication of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Numerous studies have dealt so far with the triggering cause of the chronic cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) absorptional and circulatory disorders. Despite the fact that these studies gave several different explanations, most of them agreed on the fact that the obstruction of CSF pathway has a crucial role in the development of the clinical feature. By examining three years' clinical cases, the authors were trying to find out which are the factors that influence the development of the late hydrocephalus which follows the subarachnoid hemorrhage; moreover to find out if the incidence of the latter may be decreased by a continuous drainage of CSF which advances its purification. One hundred and seventy-one patients (one hundred and twenty-seven females) were treated by aneurysmal SAH at Department of Neurosurgery, University of Szeged between 2002 and 2005. The following parameters were recorded: gender, clinical state, risk factors (smoking, consuming alcohol and hypertension), the method and the time of surgical treatment as well as CSF drainage. The studies have shown that the risk of incidence of chronic hydrocephalus were higher in men and in case of severe clinical state with severe SAH. The disturbed CSF circulation and/or absorption were positively correlated with consuming alcohol and hypertension, while smoking did not affect it. The rate of the incidence of chronic hydrocephalus among our patients was lower (5.8%) compared to the results of other studies (7-40%) suggests that disturbance of CSF circulation and/or absorption may be avoided in the majority of cases by continuous external ventricular or lumbar CSF drainage, which is applied routinly.

[Successful surgical removal of a mesencephalic cavernous angioma, which was responsible for progressive neurological deficits]. / Progresszív tüneteket okozó, a mesencephalonban elhelyezkedô cavernoma sebészi eltávolítása.

Cavernous angiomas comprise 5-10% of all vascular malformations in the central nervous system, occurring most frequently in the supratentorial region, and 20% of them in the brain stem. According to literature, brain stem cavernous angiomas occur most frequently in the pons (60%), and equally in the mesencephalon (20%) and in medulla oblongata. In clinical evaluation the authors describe the successful removal of a mesencephalic cavernous angioma causing progressive neurological deficits and symptoms. The authors present a case of a 51 year old female, who had developed 1 year prior to her admittance: fatigue, weakness in the right upper limb and fingers, right lower limb ataxia. One month later, her lower right limb developed sensory deficits. The first neurological exploration indicated dysarthria, moderate facial and right hemiparesis, hemihypaesthesia and ataxia. CT and MR imaging indicated multilobulated cavernomas in the mesencephalon. After conservative treatment the patient became almost symptom free, and thus neurosurgical treatment was not discussed. Later on her symptoms fluctuated, but after 6 month she suddenly developed progressive right hemiparesis, right facial weakness, serious dysphasia, and emotional incontinence combined with continuous spastic sobbings. The control MRI showed enlargement of the cavernomas and new extravasation. Surgery was indicated for removing the cavernomas. The left infratentorial, supracerebellar approach revealed a blood engorged cavernoma in the center of the mesencephalon, almost dividing it. The cavernomas and accompanying haematoma was extirpated. The patient's neurological symptoms rapidly improved after surgery, her dysphasia as well as motor weakness have disappeared. Six days after surgery, we discharged a neurologically symptomless and self-supporting patient. The literature and the presented case indicates that the correct timing and proper surgery allows brain stem cavernomas to be safely removed, or significantly bated, which results in the massive regression of neurological symptoms.

[The role of MR angiography in predicting operative results of microvascular decompression in patients with trigeminal neuralgia]. / Az MR-angiográfia szerepe a microvascularis dekompresszióval kezelt trigeminusneuralgias betegek mutéti eredményének prognosztizálásábdan.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: The results of medium-term outcome of microvascular decompression (MVD) for trigeminal neuralgia are presented. The authors compare the preoperative 3-dimension magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) results with the surgical findings during MVD. Information, provided by MRA, are evaluated regarding to the prognostic significance in typical TN, atypical TN and persistent idiopathic facial pain (PIFP). The significance of clinical symptoms and the type of neurovascular compression (NC) are investigated in respect of the postoperative success and recurrent symptoms. METHODS AND RESULTS: MRA was performed in 310 consecutive patients with TN and PIFP. The MRA image was positive in 179 (58%) of the 310 cases. 68.2% of the typical TN group, 49.2% of the atypical TN group and 3.2% of the PIFP group were positive. MVD was performed in 116 of the MRA positive cases. Four years following the MVD, 69% of the patients gave an excellent and 23% a good result. The surgical findings corresponded with the MRA images. NC could be ruled out in the background of PIFP. The rate of recurrent symptoms following MVD is 21% in the typical TN group while it is 41% in the atypical TN group. The pure venous compression showed 57% pain-recurrence rate following MVD. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical symptoms and preoperative MRA carry considerable information, which can predict the outcome of the MVD and the rate of recurrent symptoms. Atypical TN and venous compression are bad prognostic factors.

Traumatic prepontine tension pneumocephalus--case report.

OBJECTIVE: A case of prepontine tension pneumocephalus after temporal bone fracture is presented. CASE REPORT: An 8-year-old girl suffered a head injury due to a fall off her bicycle. She lost her consciousness, and when she was admitted to the local hospital the Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) was 8/15 (eye opening: 2; verbal answer: 2; motor response: 4) and there was bleeding from the right ear. The patient's condition deteriorated rapidly and she needed intubation and ventilation. CT of the brain revealed large amount of air in the prepontine region, displacing the brainstem posteriorly. Patient was kept ventilated, meanwhile cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), as otorrhea appeared on the right side. CT was repeated 36 hours later, showing significantly less air in the prepontine area. The patient was weaned off the respirator, extubated and the level of consciousness improved. Later the patient developed meningitis, which was treated by systemic antibiotics with lumbar CSF drainage applied for five days. A high resolution CT scan of the petrous bone revealed a fracture crossing the middle part of the pyramid. Patient showed a full recovery except a right-sided mixed hearing loss. CONCLUSION: Rapid neurological deterioration following head injury can be a consequence of tension pneumocephalus. Prepontine pneumocephalus can be caused by minor fracture of petrous bone. High resolution CT is necessary to visualize minor fracture of the petrous bone. Conservative treatment may be satisfactory to treat tension hydrocephalus.

Combination therapy for chronic invasive rhinocerebral aspergillosis in a clinically immunocompetent patient.

BACKGROUND: Adequate therapy for chronic invasive rhinocerebral aspergillosis in immunocompetent patients is controversial. The incidence of the disease is high in the Sudan and the Middle East. Misinterpretation of diagnostic criteria, failure to verify tissue invasion of fungi, and a lack of understanding of the pathophysiology of various forms of fungal rhinosinusitis lead to controversies in nomenclature, diagnosis, and therapy. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this report was to detail the clinical presentation and the endoscopic and imaging study findings of a patient with invasive Aspergillus rhinosinusitis with endocranial and orbital extension. This patient was treated with surgical débridement and a combination of antifungal drugs and immunomodulatory therapy. METHODS: Endoscopic débridement and high-dose liposomal amphotericin B, in combination with flucytosine and immunomodulators, were used to treat this patient. RESULTS: After treatment, the patient experienced 3 years of disease-free follow-up. CONCLUSION: Surgical débridement and high-dose systemic combined antifungal therapy with immunomodulatory drugs produced an excellent long-term result for this apparently immunocompetent patient with extensive invasive fungal rhinosinusitis with cerebral and orbital involvement.