Functional hemispherotomy for epilepsy in the very young.

OBJECTIVE: Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders in children. Among very young children, one-third are resistant to medical treatment, and lack of effective treatment may result in adverse outcomes. Although functional hemispherotomy is an established treatment for epilepsy, its outcome in the very young child has not been widely reported. In this study the authors investigated seizure and developmental results after hemispherotomy in children younger than 3 years. METHODS: The authors reviewed a prospective database of all children younger than 3 years with medically intractable epilepsy who underwent functional hemispherotomy at the authors' institution during the period between 2012 and 2020. Demographic data, epilepsy history, underlying etiology, operative and transfusion details, and seizure and developmental outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS: Twelve patients were included in this study. The mean age (± SD) at seizure onset was 3 ± 2.6 months and at surgery was 1.3 ± 0.77 years, with a mean follow-up of 4 years. Diagnoses included hemimegalencephaly (n = 5), hemidysplasia (n = 2), hypoxic/hemorrhagic (n = 2), traumatic (n = 1), Sturge-Weber syndrome (n = 1), and mild hemispheric structural abnormality with EEG/PET correlates (n = 1). Eleven patients achieved an Engel class I outcome, and 1 patient achieved Engel class IV at last follow-up. No deaths, infections, cerebrovascular events, or unexpected long-term neurological deficits were recorded. All children progressed neurodevelopmentally following surgery, but their developmental levels remained behind their chronological age, with an overall mean composite Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale score of 58 (normal: 86-114, low: < 70). One patient required insertion of a subdural peritoneal shunt, 1 patient required dural repair for a CSF fluid leak, and 1 patient required aspiration of a pseudomeningocele. In 2 patients, both of whom weighed less than 5.7 kg, the first operation was incomplete due to blood loss. CONCLUSIONS: Hemispherotomy in children younger than 3 years offers excellent seizure control and an acceptable risk-to-benefit ratio in well-selected patients. Families of children weighing less than 6 kg should be counseled regarding the possibility of staged surgery. Postoperatively, children continue to make appropriate, despite delayed, developmental progress.

Pediatric stereo-electroencephalography: effects of robot assistance and other variables on seizure outcome and complications.

OBJECTIVE: The safety of stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) has been investigated; however, most studies have not differentiated pediatric and adult populations, which have different anatomy and physiology. The purpose of this study was to assess SEEG safety in the pediatric setting, focusing on surgical complications and the identification of patient and surgical risk factors, if any. The authors also aimed to determine whether robot assistance in SEEG was associated with a change in practice, surgical parameters, and clinical outcomes. METHODS: The authors retrospectively studied all SEEG cases performed in their department from December 2014 to March 2020. They analyzed both demographic and surgical variables and noted the types of surgery-related complications and their management. They also studied the clinical outcomes of a subset of the patients in relation to robot-assisted and non-robot-assisted SEEG. RESULTS: Sixty-three children had undergone 64 SEEG procedures. Girls were on average 3 years younger than the boys (mean age 11.1 vs 14.1 years, p < 0.01). The overall complication rate was 6.3%, and the complication rate for patients with left-sided electrodes was higher than that for patients with right-sided electrodes (11.1% vs 3.3%), although the difference between the two groups was not statistically significant. The duration of recording was positively correlated to the number of implanted electrodes (r = 0.296, p < 0.05). Robot assistance was associated with a higher number of implanted electrodes (mean 12.6 vs 7.6 electrodes, p < 0.0001). Robot-assisted implantations were more accurate, with a mean error of 1.51 mm at the target compared to 2.98 mm in nonrobot implantations (p < 0.001). Clinical outcomes were assessed in the first 32 patients treated (16 in the nonrobot group and 16 in the robot group), 23 of whom proceeded to further resective surgery. The children who had undergone robot-assisted SEEG had better eventual seizure control following subsequent epilepsy surgery. Of the children who had undergone resective epilepsy surgery, 42% (5/12) in the nonrobot group and 82% (9/11) in the robot group obtained an Engel class IA outcome at 1 year (χ2 = 3.885, p = 0.049). Based on Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, the robot group had a higher seizure-free rate than the nonrobot group at 30 months postoperation (7/11 vs 2/12, p = 0.063). Two complications, whose causes were attributed to the implantation and head-bandaging steps, required surgical intervention. All complications were either transient or reversible. CONCLUSIONS: This is the largest single-center, exclusively pediatric SEEG series that includes robot assistance so far. SEEG complications are uncommon and usually transient or treatable. Robot assistance enabled implantation of more electrodes and improved epilepsy surgery outcomes, as compared to those in the non-robot-assisted cases.

Chyloperitoneum following open myelomeningocele repair: dealing with an extremely rare finding.

PURPOSE: Chyloperitoneum is an extremely rare finding following myelomeningocele (MMC) repair in neonates. We aimed to describe the characteristics of such a case and explore its clinical significance. CASE REPORT: A male baby born at term with open MMC and hydrocephalus underwent MMC repair surgery with rotational flaps on the first postnatal day. The procedure was uneventful. Three days later, he underwent a right ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) insertion. On opening the peritoneum, a remarkable amount of yellowish opaque fluid was observed. Chyloperitoneum was suspected, but the VPS procedure was completed as planned. Biochemical analysis was consistent with that of chyle. DISCUSSION: Neonatal chylous ascites is a rare condition; hence, available data on pathophysiology and therapy in the literature are scarce. It is postulated that the MMC repair in neonates causes abdominal tautness, which leads to rupture of small lymphatics and raised intraportal pressure. The combination of these two processes results in extravasation of chyle from the gastrointestinal tract. Presence of chyloperitoneum is not a contraindication for VPS insertion. CONCLUSION: Chyloperitoneum is an extremely rare sequela of MMC repair in neonates. Pediatric neurosurgeons should be aware of it, especially when a VPS procedure is to follow a repair, in order to know how to deal with it and avoid unnecessary abandonment of the shunt.

Clinical outcomes of VNS therapy with AspireSR® (including cardiac-based seizure detection) at a large complex epilepsy and surgery centre.

PURPOSE: To compare the efficacy of AspireSR® to preceding VNS battery models for battery replacements, and to determine the efficacy of the AspireSR® for new implants. METHODS: Data were collected retrospectively from patients with epilepsy who had VNS AspireSR® implanted over a three-year period between June 2014 and June 2017 by a single surgeon. Cases were divided into two cohorts, those in whom the VNS was a new insertion, and those in whom the VNS battery was changed from a previous model to AspireSR®. Within each group, the seizure burden was compared between the periods before and after insertion of AspireSR®. RESULTS: Fifty-one patients with a newly inserted AspireSR® VNS model had a significant reduction in seizure frequency (p < 0.001), with 59% (n = 30) reporting ≥50% reduction. Of the 62 patients who had an existing VNS, 53% (n = 33) reported ≥50% reduction in seizure burden when the original VNS was inserted. After the battery was changed to the AspireSR®, 71% (n = 44) reported a further reduction of ≥50% in their seizure burden. The size of this reduction was at least as large as that resulting from the insertion of their existing VNS in 98% (61/62) of patients. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that approximately 70% of patients with existing VNS insertions could have significant additional benefit from cardiac based seizure detection and closed loop stimulation from the AspireSR® device. For new insertions, the AspireSR® device has efficacy in 59% of patients. The 'rule of thirds' used in counseling patients may need to be modified accordingly.

Mediastinal impalement with a fibreglass sheet.

Mediastinal impalement injuries are uncommon and often fatal. There have been very few reported cases of survival following mediastinal impalement. Patients who present with these injuries always undergo operative intervention regardless of their underlying haemodynamic status or associated injuries. We herein present a case of mediastinal impalement injury, where a sheet of fibreglass had fractured the manubrium and entered the anterior mediastinum with no associated great vessel injury. The fibreglass sheet was removed via a partial sternotomy and the patient made an uneventful postoperative recovery.