Intraoperative acquisition of DTI in cranial neurosurgery: readout-segmented DTI versus standard single-shot DTI.

OBJECTIVE: Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography is commonly used in neurosurgical practice but is largely limited to the preoperative setting. This is due primarily to image degradation caused by susceptibility artifact when conventional single-shot (SS) echo-planar imaging (EPI) DTI (SS-DTI) is acquired for open cranial, surgical position intraoperative DTI (iDTI). Readout-segmented (RS) EPI DTI (RS-DTI) has been reported to reduce such artifact but has not yet been evaluated in the intraoperative MRI (iMRI) environment. The authors evaluated the performance of RS versus SS EPI for DTI of the human brain in the iMRI setting. METHODS: Pre- and intraoperative 3-T 3D T1-weighted and 2D multislice RS-iDTI (called RESOLVE [readout segmentation of long variable echo-trains] on the Siemens platform) and SS-iDTI images were acquired in 22 adult patients undergoing intraaxial iMRI resections for suspected low-grade glioma (14; 64%), high-grade glioma (7; 32%), or focal cortical dysplasia. Regional susceptibility artifact, anatomical deviation relative to T1-weighted imaging, and tractographic output for surgically relevant tracts were compared between iDTI sequences as well as the intraoperative tract shifts from preoperative DTI. RESULTS: RS-iDTI resulted in qualitatively less regional susceptibility artifact (resection cavity, orbitofrontal and anterior temporal cortices) and mean anatomical deviation in regions most prone to susceptibility artifact (RS-iDTI 2.7 ± 0.2 vs SS-iDTI 7.5 ± 0.4 mm) compared to SS-iDTI. Although tract reconstruction success did not significantly differ by DTI method, susceptibility artifact-related tractography failure (of at least 1 surgically relevant tract) occurred for SS-iDTI in 8/22 (36%) patients, and in 5 of these 8 patients RS-iDTI permitted successful reconstruction. Among cases with successful tractography for both sequences, maximal intersequence differences were substantial (mean 9.5 ± 5.7 mm, range -27.1 to 18.7 mm). CONCLUSIONS: RS EPI enables higher quality and more accurate DTI for surgically relevant tractography of major white matter tracts in intraoperative, open cranium neurosurgical applications at 3 T.

Mobile Applications in Neurosurgery: A Systematic Review, Quality Audit, and Survey of Canadian Neurosurgery Residents.

BACKGROUND: In the past decade, smartphone applications (Apps) have experienced remarkable development across all fields of medicine, including neurosurgery. However, owing to a lack of regulatory oversight and peer review, a clear need exists for a comprehensive review and audit of the existing available Apps. In the present study, we systematically reviewed the existing mobile Apps in neurosurgery, evaluated their clinical use by neurosurgery residents in Canada, and performed a quality audit of the most popular Apps. METHODS: Indexed Apps were identified from either the Google Play Store or the iOS App Store using a comprehensive list of keywords related to neurosurgery. A subsequent cross-sectional survey of 76 Canadian neurosurgery residents was conducted, including a section on smartphone App use. We next evaluated the most popular Apps among the residents using the Healthcare Smartphone App Evaluation Tool and performed a quality audit of their content using established medical references. RESULTS: The survey identified 118 mobile Apps related to neurosurgery. The 3 most used Apps used by the current cohort of Canadian neurosurgery residents were Neurosurgery Survival Guide, Neuromind, and the Journal of Neurosurgery App. Each of these 3 Apps received an excellent score on the Healthcare Smartphone App Evaluation Tool. A quality audit of 30 pages of the Neurosurgery Survival Guide and 40 clinical scores of the Neuromind App, performed by 10 neurosurgery residents, failed to reveal inaccurate or false statements. CONCLUSION: The present study has highlighted the current landscape of neurosurgery mobile Apps and their use among neurosurgery residents.

Seizure outcome in pediatric medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy surgery: selective amygdalohippocampectomy versus anterior temporal lobectomy.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate long-term seizure outcome, rate of reoperation, and postoperative neuropsychological performance following selective amygdalohippocampectomy (SelAH) or anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL) in pediatric patients with medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). METHODS The authors performed a retrospective review of cases of medically refractory pediatric TLE treated initially with either SelAH or ATL. Standardized pre- and postoperative evaluation included seizure charting, surface and long-term video-electroencephalography, 1.5-T MRI, and neuropsychological testing. RESULTS A total of 79 patients treated initially with SelAH (n = 18) or ATL (n = 61) were included in this study, with a mean follow-up of 5.3 ± 4 years (range 1-16 years). The patients' average age at initial surgery was 10.6 ± 5 years, with an average surgical delay of 5.7 ± 4 years between seizure onset and surgery. Seizure freedom (Engel I) following the initial operation was significantly more likely following ATL (47/61, 77%) than SelAH (8/18, 44%; p = 0.017, Fisher's exact test). There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of patients with postoperative neuropsychological deficits following SelAH (8/18, 44%) or ATL (21/61, 34%). However, reoperation was significantly more likely following SelAH (8/18, 44%) than after ATL (7/61, 11%; p = 0.004) and was more likely to result in Engel I outcome for ATL after failed SelAH (7/8, 88%) than for posterior extension after failed ATL (1/7, 14%; p = 0.01). Reoperation was well tolerated without significant neuropsychological deterioration. Ultimately, including 15 reoperations, 58 of 79 (73%) patients were free from disabling seizures at the most recent follow-up. CONCLUSIONS SelAH among pediatric patients with medically refractory unilateral TLE yields significantly worse rates of seizure control compared with ATL. Reoperation is significantly more likely following SelAH, is not associated with incremental neuropsychological deterioration, and frequently results in freedom from disabling seizures. These results are significant in that they argue against using SelAH for pediatric TLE surgery.

Longitudinal hippocampal and extra-hippocampal microstructural and macrostructural changes following temporal lobe epilepsy surgery.

OBJECTIVES: 1) Characterize the evolution of microstructural changes in the contralateral, non-operated hippocampus-using longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-following surgery for temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). 2) Characterize the downstream extra-hippocampal volumetric changes of the fornix and mammillary bodies after TLE surgery. 3) Examine the relationship between these measures and seizure/cognitive outcome. METHODS: Serial structural and DTI brain MRI scans were collected in 25 TLE patients pre- and post-surgery (anterior temporal lobectomy, ATL - 13; selective amygdalohippocampectomy, SelAH - 12) and in 12 healthy controls. Contralateral hippocampal fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD) were computed with manual hippocampal tracings as volumes of interest following co-registration to anatomical images. Fornix and mammillary body volumetry was performed by manual segmentation. RESULTS: After surgery, the non-resected hippocampus showed significant postoperative decline in FA (p = 0.0001), with increase of MD (p = 0.01) and RD (p = 0.0001). In contrast to the timing of our previously reported volume changes where atrophy is observed in the first week, diffusion changes occurred late, taking 1-3 years to develop and are not significant at one week after surgery. Diffusion changes are accompanied by delayed limbic circuit volume loss in the mammillary bodies (35%; p < 0.0001) and fornix (24%; p < 0.0001) compared to baseline. There was no correlation between postoperative diffusion or structural changes and memory score nor did the degree of postoperative change in hippocampal DTI parameters, mammillary body volume or fornix volume vary significantly based on seizure outcome. SIGNIFICANCE: Differences observed in the timing of postoperative volume (first week) and FA/MD (one year) changes would suggest that early contralateral hippocampal atrophy is not secondary to fluid shifts (dehydration) while the late DTI changes suggest ongoing microstructural changes extending beyond the early postoperative period. Postoperative hippocampal diffusion changes are accompanied by delayed mammillary body and fornix volume loss which did not differ when stratified by seizure outcome nor was correlated with degree of hippocampal diffusion change. Finally, we did not identify any significant correlation between postoperative diffusion parameter change and memory performance.

Smartphone Usage Patterns by Canadian Neurosurgery Residents: A National Cross-Sectional Survey.

BACKGROUND: Smartphones and their apps are used ubiquitously in medical practice. However, in some cases their use can be at odds with current patient data safety regulations such as Canada's Personal Health Information Protection Act of 2004. To assess current practices and inform mobile application development, we sought to better understand mobile device usage patterns among Canadian neurosurgery residents. METHODS: Through the Canadian Neurosurgery Research Collaborative, an online survey characterizing smartphone ownership and usage patterns was developed and sent to all Canadian neurosurgery resident in April of 2016. Questionnaires were collected and completed surveys analyzed. RESULTS: Of 146 eligible residents, 76 returned completed surveys (52% response rate). Of these 99% of respondents owned a smartphone, with 79% running on Apple's iOS. Four general mobile uses were identified: 1) communication between members of the medical team, 2) decision support, 3) medical reference, and 4) documentation through medical photography. Communication and photography were areas where the most obvious breaches in the Canadian Personal Health Information Protection Act were noted, with 89% of respondents taking pictures of patients' radiologic studies and 75% exchanging them with Short Message System. Hospital policies had no impact on user behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Smartphones are used daily by most neurosurgery residents. Identified usage patterns are associated with perceived gains in efficacy and challenges in privacy and data reliability. We believe creating and improving workflows that address these usage patterns has a greater potential to improve privacy than changing policies and enforcing regulations.

Early diffusion restriction of white matter in infants with small subdural hematomas is associated with delayed atrophy.

BACKGROUND: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of infant morbidity and mortality. In these patients, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) is the test of choice to describe the extent of microstructural injury. CASE PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION: In this case series, we describe novel acute and chronic MRI findings in four infants (6-19 months) with small, unilateral subdural hematomas in whom the etiology of head injury was suspicious for non-accidental trauma (NAT). Acute (<1-week post-injury) DWI revealed extensive areas of restricted diffusion isolated to the cerebral white matter predominantly ipsilateral to the subdural hematoma. After prolonged pediatric intensive care treatment including subdural evacuation (n = 2) or decompressive craniectomy (n = 1), all patients survived albeit with significant motor and cognitive deficits. Delayed structural MRI (6-9-year post-injury) demonstrated cortical and subcortical atrophy well-correlated with areas of acute restricted diffusion. CONCLUSION: These four cases highlight that relatively small subdural hematomas can be associated with extensive white matter injury-detectable only by early DWI-which have long-term structural and functional consequences.

Progressive contralateral hippocampal atrophy following surgery for medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: Determine the extent and time course of volumetric changes in the contralateral hippocampus following surgery for medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). METHODS: Serial T1-weighted MRI brain scans were obtained in 26 TLE patients pre- and post-temporal lobe epilepsy surgery as well as in 12 control subjects of similar age. Patients underwent either anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL) or selective amygdalohippocampectomy (SAH). Blinded, manual hippocampal volumetry (head, body, and tail) was performed in two groups: 1) two scan group [ATL (n=6); SAH (n=10)], imaged pre-surgery and on average at 5.4 years post-surgery; and 2) longitudinal group [ATL (n=8); SAH (n=2)] imaged pre-surgery and on post-operative day 1, 2, 3, 6, 60, 120 and a delayed time point (average 2.4 years). RESULTS: In the two scan group, there was atrophy by 12% of the unresected contralateral hippocampus (p<0.001), with atrophy being most pronounced (27%) in the hippocampal body (p<0.001) with no significant differences seen for the hippocampal head or tail. In the longitudinal group, significant atrophy was also observed for the whole hippocampus and the body with atrophy seen as early as post-operative day #1 which progressed significantly over the first post-operative week (1.3%/day and 3.0%./day, respectively) before stabilizing over the long-term to a 13% reduction in total volume. There was no significant difference in atrophy compared by surgical approach (ATL vs. SAH; p=0.94) or side (p=0.31); however, atrophy was significantly more pronounced in patients with ongoing post-operative seizures (hippocampal body, p=0.019; whole hippocampus, p=0.048). There were no detectable post-operative neuropsychological deficits attributable to contralateral hippocampal atrophy. SIGNIFICANCE: Significant contralateral hippocampal atrophy occurs following TLE surgery, which begins immediately and progresses over the first post-operative week. The observation that seizure free patients had significantly less atrophy of the contralateral hippocampus after surgery suggests the possibility of an early post-operative imaging marker to predict surgical outcome.

Magnetic resonance imaging artifact following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion with a trabecular metal cage.

OBJECT: This study was undertaken to evaluate the impact of postoperative MRI artifact on the assessment of ongoing spinal cord or nerve root compression after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) using a trabecular tantalum cage or bone autograft or allograft. METHODS: The authors conducted a retrospective review of postoperative MRI studies of patients treated surgically for cervical disc degenerative disease or cervical instability secondary to trauma. Standard ACDF with either a trabecular tantalum cage or interbody bone graft had been performed. Postoperative MR images were shown twice in random order to each of 3 assessors (2 spine surgeons, 1 neuroradiologist) to determine whether the presence of a tantalum interbody cage and/or anterior cervical fixation plate or screws imparted MRI artifact significant enough to prevent reliable postoperative assessment of ongoing spinal cord or nerve root compression. RESULTS: A total of 63 patients were identified. One group of 29 patients received a tantalum interbody cage, with 13 patients (45%) undergoing anterior plate fixation. A second group of 34 patients received bone auto- or allograft, with 23 (68%) undergoing anterior plate fixation. The paramagnetic implant construct artifact had minimal impact on visualization of postoperative surgical level spinal cord compression. In the cage group, 98% (171/174) of the cases were rated as assessable versus 99% in the bone graft group (201/204), with high intraobserver reliability. In contrast, for the assessment of ongoing surgical level nerve root compression, the presence of a tantalum cage significantly decreased visualization of nerve roots to 70% (121/174) in comparison with 85% (173/204) in the bone graft group (p < 0.001). When sequences using turbo spin echo (TSE), a T2-weighted axial sequence, were acquired, nerve roots were rated as assessable in 88% (69/78) of cases; when only axial T2-weighted sequences were available, the nerve roots were rated as assessable in 54% (52/96) of cases (p < 0.01). The presence of anterior plate fixation had minimal impact on visualization of the spinal cord (99% [213/216] for plated cases vs 98% [159/162] for nonplated cases; p = 1.0) or nerve roots (79% [170/216] for plated cases vs 77% [124/162] for nonplated cases; p = 0.62). CONCLUSIONS: Interbody fusion with tantalum cage following anterior cervical discectomy imparts significant paramagnetic artifact, which significantly decreases visualization and assessment of ongoing surgical level nerve root, but not spinal cord, compression. Anterior plate constructs do not affect visualization of these structures. TSE T2-weighted sequences significantly improve nerve root visualization and should be performed as part of a standard postoperative protocol when imaging the cervical spine following interbody implantation of materials with potential for paramagnetic artifact.

Mannitol dosing error during interfacility transfer for intracranial emergencies.

OBJECT: Mannitol is commonly used to treat elevated intracranial pressure (ICP). The authors analyzed mannitol dosing errors at peripheral hospitals prior to or during transport to tertiary care facilities for intracranial emergencies. They also investigated the appropriateness of mannitol use based on the 2007 Brain Trauma Foundation guidelines for severe traumatic brain injury. METHODS: The authors conducted a retrospective review of the Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS) electronic patient database of helicopter medical evacuations in Alberta, Canada, between 2004 and 2012, limited to patients receiving mannitol before transfer. They extracted data on mannitol administration and patient characteristics, including diagnosis, mechanism, Glasgow Coma Scale score, weight, age, and pupil status. RESULTS: A total of 120 patients with an intracranial emergency received a mannitol infusion initiated at a peripheral hospital (median Glasgow Coma Scale score 6; range 3-13). Overall, there was a 22% dosing error rate, which comprised an underdosing rate (<0.25 g/kg) of 8.3% (10 of 120 patients), an overdosing rate (>1.5 g/kg) of 7.5% (9 of 120), and a nonbolus administration rate (>1 hour) of 6.7% (8 of 120). Overall, 72% of patients had a clear indication to receive mannitol as defined by meeting at least one of the following criteria based on Brain Trauma Foundation guidelines: neurological deterioration (11%), severe traumatic brain injury (69%), or pupillary abnormality (25%). CONCLUSIONS: Mannitol administration at peripheral hospitals is prone to dosing error. Strategies such as a pretransport checklist may mitigate this risk.

Projections of the nucleus of the basal optic root in pigeons (Columba livia): a comparison of the morphology and distribution of neurons with different efferent projections.

The avian nucleus of the basal optic root (nBOR) is a visual structure involved in the optokinetic response. nBOR consists of several morphologically distinct cell types, and in the present study, we sought to determine if these different cell types had differential projections. Using retrograde tracers, we examined the morphology and distribution of nBOR neurons projecting to the vestibulocerebellum (VbC), inferior olive (IO), dorsal thalamus, the pretectal nucleus lentiformis mesencephali (LM), the contralateral nBOR, the oculomotor complex (OMC) and a group of structures along the midline of the mesencephalon. The retrogradely labeled neurons fell into two broad categories: large neurons, most of which were multipolar rather than fusiform and small neurons, which were either fusiform or multipolar. From injections into the IO, LM, contralateral nBOR, and structures along the midline-mesencephalon small nBOR neurons were labeled. Although there were no differences with respect to the size of the labeled neurons from these injections, there were some differences with the respect to the distribution of labeled neurons and the proportion of multipolar vs. fusiform neurons. From injections into the VbC, the large multipolar cells were labeled throughout nBOR. The only other cases in which these large neurons were labeled were contralateral OMC injections. To investigate if single neurons project to multiple targets we used paired injections of red and green fluorescent retrograde tracers into different targets. Double-labeled neurons were never observed indicating that nBOR neurons do not project to multiple targets. We conclude that individual nBOR neurons have unique projections, which may have differential roles in processing optic flow and controlling the optokinetic response.