ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Tumefactive demyelination presents as an aggressive, fast progressive focal demyelinating lesion in the central nervous system, with often devastating clinical outcome if not acutely treated. Correct and early treatment is threatened by its real diagnostic challenge. CASE REPORT: We describe a 47-year-old man with tumefactive demyelination and testicular seminoma. He presented with aphasia, cognitive impairment and right sided weakness of the arm and lower face. MRI revealed a lesion characteristic of tumefactive demyelination. Cerebral biopsy confirmed this diagnosis. In addition, a testicular seminoma was diagnosed. Temporal association of demyelination and malignancy was highly suggestive for a paraneoplastic syndrome. He responded well to corticosteroid therapy plus orchiectomy, but a behavioral disturbance remained. DISCUSSION: A good knowledge of specific imaging characteristics of tumefactive demyelination can help in early diagnosis. Multiple underlying causes should be considered, including, but not limited to multiple sclerosis. A paraneoplastic syndrome should not be overlooked. This is the fifth case in which seminoma is associated with a paraneoplastic tumefactive demyelination lesion.
Subject(s)
Brain Diseases/etiology , Demyelinating Diseases/etiology , Paraneoplastic Syndromes, Nervous System/etiology , Seminoma/complications , Testicular Neoplasms/complications , Brain Diseases/diagnosis , Demyelinating Diseases/diagnosis , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Paraneoplastic Syndromes, Nervous System/diagnosis , Seminoma/diagnosis , Testicular Neoplasms/diagnosisABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Manipulation of the endoscope during minimally invasive surgery is a major source of inconvenience and discomfort. This report elucidates the architecture of a novel one-hand controlled endoscope positioning device and presents a practicability evaluation. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Setup time and total surgery time, number and duration of the manipulations, side effects of three-dimensional (3D) imaging, and ergonomic complaints were assessed by three surgeons during cadaveric and in vivo porcine trials. RESULTS: Setup was accomplished in an average (SD) of 230 (120) seconds. The manipulation time was 3.87 (1.77) seconds for angular movements and 0.83 (0.24) seconds for zooming, with an average (SD) of 30.5 (16.3) manipulations per procedure. No side effects of 3D imaging or ergonomic complaints were reported. CONCLUSIONS: The integration of an active zoom into a passive endoscope holder delivers a convenient synergy between a human and a machine-controlled holding device. It is shown to be safe, simple, and intuitive to use and allows unrestrained autonomic control of the endoscope by the surgeon.
