Clinical Trial Based Rationale for the Successful Use of DOAC in the Treatment of Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis (CVST): A Case Report.

In cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), venous sinus occlusion increases venous pressure and disrupts venous return, resulting in progression to venous infarction and venous hemorrhage, with poor neurologic outcome. Therefore, early recanalization of the major venous sinus is critical. Anticoagulant therapy with continuous intravenous infusion of heparin and subsequent oral anticoagulant administration is the recommended first line of treatment for CVST. Some large clinical trials for venous thromboembolism (VTE) have shown that direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) is non-inferior to the standard therapy with heparin or warfarin and causes less bleeding. In contrast, there are only a few reports on CVST treatment with DOAC such as Dabigatran, Rivaroxaban and Edoxaban describing good efficacy and safety. And there is one randomized clinical trial on DOAC treatment for CVST after acute phase. We report a successfully treated case of CVST in acute phase with progressive neurologic symptoms that achieved early recanalization of the obstructed sinus by an early switch from continuous intravenous infusion of heparin to oral Edoxaban.

Fatal Hemorrhage Immediately after Transvenous Embolization of Transverse-sigmoid Sinus Dural Arteriovenous Fistulas: A Case Report.

Objective: We report a case of intracerebral hemorrhage following emergency transvenous embolization for an acute symptomatic non-hemorrhagic dural arteriovenous fistula (dAVF). Case Presentation: An 83-year-old woman demonstrated gait disorder and disturbance of consciousness. A transverse-sigmoid dAVF with retrograde deep venous drainage was detected on DSA. The left sigmoid sinus-jugular vein and the sinus confluence were occluded and the dAVF drains via the straight sinus (SS), medial superior cerebral veins and deep veins to the superior sagittal sinus (SSS). The dAVF was emergently treated by sinus packing of the transverse-sigmoid sinus with coils with contralateral approach via the occluded sinus confluence. Although the dAVF was markedly regressed, massive cerebral hemorrhage developed in the left parietal lobe immediately after embolization. Conclusion: Although early treatment is required for dAVFs with aggressive symptoms, precious evaluation of their hemodynamics, particularly for drainage pattern, is mandatory to avoid a serious complication.

Therapeutic strategy for pineal parenchymal tumor of intermediate differentiation (PPTID): case report of PPTID with malignant transformation to pineocytoma with leptomeningeal dissemination 6 years after surgery.

Pineal parenchymal tumor of intermediate differentiation (PPTID) is rare. The WHO first classified PPTID in 2000 as a pineal parenchymal tumor (PPT) with an intermediate prognosis between pineocytoma (PC) and pineoblastoma (PB). It is considered an intermediate-grade tumor and divided into WHO grade II or III.The number of available reports about PPTID is presently limited, and the appropriate management for this tumor has not yet been determined.The authors report a rare case of PC in a 63-year-old woman who presented with lower-extremity weakness and gait disturbance. A pineal mass lesion was detected on MRI. A diagnosis of PC was established after microsurgical gross-total tumor resection, and the patient received no adjuvant therapy after surgery. Two years after surgery, a partial recurrence was recognized and Gamma Knife radiosurgery was performed. Fours years later, the patient developed diffuse leptomeningeal dissemination. She was successfully treated with craniospinal irradiation. Leptomeningeal dissemination may develop 6 years after the initial diagnosis of PC. A histopathological study of the recurrent tumor revealed a malignant change from PC to PPTID.The present case shows the importance of long-term follow-up of patients with PPTs following resection and the efficacy of craniospinal irradiation in the treatment of leptomeningeal dissemination.

Utility of relative ADC ratio in patient selection for endovascular revascularization of large vessel occlusion.

PURPOSE: The relative apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) ratio on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to evaluate the degree of ischemia. Here, we assessed the predictability of ischemic reversibility and the risk of hemorrhagic transformation using the relative ADC ratio. METHODS: This single-center retrospective study analyzed 56 patients with acute occlusion of the internal carotid artery (ICA) or the middle cerebral artery (M1) with endovascular revascularization. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) lesions were classified as reversible lesions, final infarct lesions, and hemorrhagic or non-hemorrhagic regions. The relative ADC ratio was calculated in each DWI lesion and was defined as the ratio of ADC pixel values within affected territory to ADC pixel values in contralateral normal brain regions. RESULTS: The average relative ADC ratio was 0.890±0.045 in reversible DWI lesion and 0.640±0.041 in final infarct DWI lesion (P<0.001). In 4 cases with hemorrhagic transformation, hemorrhagic transformation regions were 0.557±0.049 and non-hemorrhagic transformation regions were 0.762±0.042 (P<0.001). In addition, percentage DWI improvement was inversely correlated with DWI lesion volume at the time of hospitalization (r=-0.840) and onset-to-reperfusion time (r=-0.765), but no correlation was noted with patient age (r=-0.043) or the first NIHSS score (r=-0.277). CONCLUSIONS: The relative ADC ratio may be useful for predicting DWI reversibility and post-reperfusion hemorrhagic transformation, even in patients with an unknown time of onset.

Utility of MRI-based disproportionately enlarged subarachnoid space hydrocephalus scoring for predicting prognosis after surgery for idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: clinical research.

OBJECTIVE The presence of disproportionately enlarged subarachnoid space hydrocephalus (DESH) on brain imaging is a recognized finding of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH), but the features of DESH can vary across patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of MRI-based DESH scoring for predicting prognosis after surgery. METHODS In this single-center, retrospective cohort study, the DESH score was determined by consensus between a group of neurosurgeons, neurologists, and a neuroradiologist based on the preoperative MRI findings of the patients with suspected iNPH. The DESH score was composed of the following 5 items, each scored from 0 to 2 (maximum score 10 points): ventriculomegaly, dilated sylvian fissures, tight high convexity, acute callosal angle, and focal sulcal dilation. The association between the DESH score and improvement of the scores on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), iNPH Grading Scale (iNPHGS), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Trail Making Test-A (TMT-A), and Timed 3-Meter Up and Go Test (TUG-t) was examined. The primary end point was improvement in the mRS score at 1 year after surgery, and the secondary outcome measures were the iNPHGS, MMSE, TMT-A, and TUG-t scores at 1 year after surgery. Improvement was determined as improvement of 1 or more levels on mRS, ≥ 1 point on iNPHGS, ≥ 3 points on MMSE, a decrease of > 30% on TMT-A, and a decrease of > 10% on TUG-t. RESULTS The mean DESH score for the 50 patients (mean age 77.6 ± 5.9 years) reviewed in this study was 5.58 ± 2.01. The mean rate of change in the mRS score was -0.50 ± 0.93, indicating an inverse correlation between the DESH score and rate of change in the mRS score (r = -0.749). Patients who showed no improvement in mRS score tended to have a low DESH score as well as low preoperative MMSE and TMT-A scores. There were no differences in the areas of deep white matter hyperintensity and periventricular hyperintensity on the images between patients with and without an improved mRS score (15.6% vs 16.7%, respectively; p = 1.000). The DESH score did differ significantly between patients with and without improved scores on the iNPHGS (6.39 ± 1.76 vs 4.26 ± 1.69, respectively; p < 0.001), MMSE (6.63 ± 1.82 vs 5.09 ± 1.93; p = 0.010), TMT-A (6.32 ± 1.97 seconds vs 5.13 ± 1.93 seconds; p = 0.042), and TUG-t (6.48 ± 1.81 seconds vs 4.33 ± 1.59 seconds; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS MRI-based DESH scoring is useful for the prediction of neurological improvement and prognosis after surgery for iNPH.

Disability risk or unimproved symptoms following shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus: post hoc analysis of SINPHONI-2.

OBJECTIVE The study aim was to assess the influence of presurgical clinical symptom severity and disease duration on outcomes of shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH). The authors also evaluated the cerebrospinal fluid tap test as a predictor of improvements following shunt surgery. METHODS Eighty-three patients (45 men and 38 women, mean age 76.4 years) underwent lumboperitoneal shunt surgery, and outcomes were evaluated until 12 months following surgery. Risks for poor quality of life (Score 3 or 4 on the modified Rankin Scale [mRS]) and severe gait disturbance were evaluated at 3 and 12 months following shunt surgery, and the tap test was also conducted. Age-adjusted and multivariate relative risks were calculated using Cox proportional-hazards regression. RESULTS Of 83 patients with iNPH, 45 (54%) improved by 1 point on the mRS and 6 patients (7%) improved by ≥ 2 points at 3 months following surgery. At 12 months after surgery, 39 patients (47%) improved by 1 point on the mRS and 13 patients (16%) improved by ≥ 2 points. On the gait domain of the iNPH grading scale (iNPHGS), 36 patients (43%) improved by 1 point and 13 patients (16%) improved by ≥ 2 points at 3 months following surgery. Additionally, 32 patients (38%) improved by 1 point and 14 patients (17%) by ≥ 2 points at 12 months following surgery. In contrast, 3 patients (4%) and 2 patients (2%) had worse symptoms according to the mRS or the gait domain of the iNPHGS, respectively, at 3 months following surgery, and 5 patients (6%) and 3 patients (4%) had worse mRS scores and gait domain scores, respectively, at 12 months after surgery. Patients with severe preoperative mRS scores had a 4.7 times higher multivariate relative risk (RR) for severe mRS scores at 12 months following surgery. Moreover, patients with severe gait disturbance prior to shunt surgery had a 46.5 times greater multivariate RR for severe gait disturbance at the 12-month follow-up. Patients without improved gait following the tap test had multivariate RRs for unimproved gait disturbance of 7.54 and 11.2 at 3 and 12 months following surgery, respectively. Disease duration from onset to shunt surgery was not significantly associated with postoperative symptom severity or unimproved symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Patients with iNPH should receive treatment before their symptoms become severe in order to achieve an improved quality of life. However, the progression of symptoms varies between patients so specific timeframes are not meaningful. The authors also found that tap test scores accurately predicted shunt efficacy. Therefore, indications for shunt surgery should be carefully assessed in each patient with iNPH, considering the relative risks and benefits for that person, including healthy life expectancy.

Segmental Arterial Mediolysis Involving Both Vertebral and Middle Colic Arteries Leading to Subarachnoid and Intraperitoneal Hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: Segmental arterial mediolysis (SAM) is not yet well known in the neurosurgical field, even though it has become an increasingly recognized pathology in arterial dissection. CASE DESCRIPTION: A case of SAM presented as subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) due to a dissecting aneurysm of the left intracranial vertebral artery (VA), which extended from the proximal VA union to the distal portion of the left posterior inferior cerebellar artery. The lesion was successfully embolized by an endovascular technique. However, subsequent intraperitoneal hemorrhage due to rupture of a fusiform aneurysm of the middle colic artery prompted surgical treatments. The features of the extirpated visceral vascular lesion were compatible with the diagnosis of SAM based on histopathologic examinations. CONCLUSIONS: It is very important that SAM is recognized as a systemic disease that affects the central nervous system, visceral arteries, and coronary arteries. The possibility of SAM should always be considered, particularly in patients with ruptured VA dissection-which is nowadays treated by endovascular techniques-since concomitantly involved visceral arteries may cause unexpected hemorrhagic complications other than SAH.

Prognostic factors of motor recovery after stereotactic evacuation of intracerebral hematoma.

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage represents 20 to 30% of all stroke patients in Japan. However, the treatment strategy of intracerebral hematoma remains controversial. Stereotactic hematoma evacuation is minimally invasive surgery and is beneficial for clot removal with limited tissue damage. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors affecting motor recovery after stereotactic hematoma evacuation. This retrospective analysis included 30 patients with spontaneous thalamic or putaminal hemorrhage who underwent stereotactic hematoma evacuation. We compared age, presurgical muscle strength, hematoma volume and removal rate between the patients who showed improvement of motor function (improved group) and the patients associated with no motor improvement (unchanged group). Twenty-one patients were classified into the improved group and nine patients into the unchanged group. Statistical analysis revealed that age in the improved group was significantly younger than in the unchanged group (p < 0.01), whereas there was no significant difference in presurgical muscle strength, hematoma volume and removal rate between the two groups. The present results revealed that stereotactic hematoma evacuation is attributable to the improvement of motor function, especially in the younger population, indicating the importance of cortical reorganization during post-surgical rehabilitation. In addition, this procedure could provide functional improvement in severely disabled patients. Proper patient selection to receive this therapy would be beneficial for further advances of this technique. The present result might be useful in elucidating the mechanism of motor recovery and proper patient selection for this technique.

Pituitary apoplexy presenting atypical time course of ophthalmic symptoms.

Pituitary apoplexy is defined as a sudden loss of blood supply to the pituitary gland, leading to tissue necrosis and hemorrhage. Its clinical symptoms are characterized by sudden onset of headache, nausea, vomiting, ophthalmic symptoms and hormonal dysfunction. A 65-year-old woman presented with left-sided ptosis and blurred vision. These ophthalmic symptoms gradually worsened for one month without headache, visual acuity and field deficit. Neuro-ophthalmic examination revealed left oculomotor nerve palsy. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a round mass lesion in the left cavernous sinus, which was initially suspected as thrombosed cerebral aneurysm or hemorrhagic Rathke's cleft cyst. The mass lesion was finally diagnosed as pituitary apoplexy. The patient underwent trans-sphenoidal surgery and oculomotor nerve palsy improved after the surgery. Early diagnosis and treatment including surgical decompression are crucially important in patients with oculomotor nerve palsy in pituitary apoplexy, but the symptoms of pituitary apoplexy may slowly progress. It should be noted that pituitary apoplexy could be misdiagnosed as cerebral aneurysm or Rathke's cleft cyst.