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Introduction and importance: Chordoma of the cervical spine is a rare condition associated with poor long-term outcomes. This is mainly attributed to its pathological involvement of vital structures such as the cervical roots and vertebral artery (VA). Although the most appropriate management in these cases is total en bloc excision, attaining complete resection is relatively challenging due to the vicinity of the critical anatomical structures mentioned above. Case description: A 15-year-old female with middle cervical spine chordoma was treated by a multidisciplinary team involving neurosurgery and head and neck surgeons utilizing anterior and posterior approaches followed by high-beam X-ray radiotherapy. Histopathological examination matched the description of a chordoma. Fifteen years after the initial excision, the patient maintained her normal neurological function without local recurrence or metastasis. Clinical discussion: The patient underwent surgery in two stages. A posterior approach for C3, C4, and C5 laminectomies was performed in the first stage, with the second stage involving head and neck surgery for complete resection of the tumor. The patient also underwent radiotherapy 3 months after surgery for a total duration of 1 month. The patient is currently 30 years old with no evidence of chordoma recurrence. Conclusion: Patients afflicted with cervical chordomas often find themselves undergoing multiple operations due to high recurrence rates. Fortunately, the utilization of en bloc resection coupled with adjuvant radiotherapy presents a hopeful treatment modality that can serve to substantially reduce recurrence rates, increase survival rates, and ultimately enhance the quality of life.
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BACKGROUND: Hydatid disease is a life-threatening parasitic infestation caused by Echinococcus granulosus. Infection with E. granulosus typically results in the formation of hydatid cysts in the liver, lungs, kidney, and spleen. Primary intracranial hydatid cyst disease is extremely rare. Here, we are reporting an unusual case of Echinococcus, where the only identifiable lesion was a hydatid cyst in the brain without liver or lung involvement. We are also providing a description for the surgical technique used to remove the cyst, highlighting the possible surgical pitfalls. CASE DESCRIPTION: The patient is a 13-year-old male with a history of progressive headache for 1 month. Intracranial hydatid cyst was suspected based on computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings. The cyst was delivered without rupture using hydrostatic dissection (Dowling's technique), and pathological analysis confirmed the diagnosis. Postoperatively, the patient showed marked neurological improvement and all signs and symptoms resolved. CONCLUSION: Intracranial hydatid cyst is very rare. Nevertheless, it should always be considered as a differential diagnosis in cerebral cystic lesions, especially in children. The surgical technique used to remove the cyst appears to be safe. However, several precautions must be applied intraoperatively to avoid the catastrophe of cyst rupture.
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OBJECTIVES: To present our experience in operated meningioma cases regarding their prevalence, anatomical location, multiplicity, presenting signs and symptoms, and the possible correlation between MRI signal intensity and histological grades to set criteria for radio-pathological diagnosis. METHODS: In this retrospective study, operated meningioma cases in the Department of Neurosurgery, Jordan University Hospital (JUH), Amman, Jordan between January 1997 and January 2007 were reviewed. Our study included 90 cases, and their medical records, histopathological reports, and neuroimages were analyzed thoroughly. RESULTS: Meningioma was more common in females than males with a ratio of 2.2:1. Para-sagittal meningiomas were the most common (23.3%). Multiple intracranial meningiomas were found in 4.4% of the cases. Most cases were of benign histopathology and exhibited iso-intense signals on T1 and T2, and appeared with hyper-intense signals on FLAIR with vivid enhancement. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of meningioma among genders and its anatomical location at JUH corresponds to the published medical literature worldwide. There was no correlation between signal intensities (as seen on T1WI, T2WI, and FLAIR sequences), enhancement pattern on one side, and histological grades on the other side.
