Migration of a ventriculo-peritoneal shunt catheter into a back incision of a patient with previous spinal fusion.

INTRODUCTION: This case examines a unique, longitudinal presentation of an abandoned, migrating VP shunt which presents as multiple complications, including a weeping abscess in the patients back. We believe that the latter complication was potentially caused by the wound from the patient's previous history of spinal fusion surgery. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient presents with an associated type 2 Chiari malformation, hydrocephalus, and a previous history of posterior spinal fusion (T4-L5 anterior fusion and T2-L5 posterior fusion) at age 11. The patient had undergone shunt revisions in early adolescence as well. At 22, the patient is admitted into emergency care due to recurrent infections caused by a migrating VP shunt. Due to complications in corrective surgery at the time, the shunt was forced to be abandoned. This resulted in the most recent presentation of a weeping abscess at the patient's spinal fusion surgery wound; the culprit was the abandoned, migrating VP shunt.. MANAGEMENT/OUTCOME: An initial course of broad-spectrum antibiotics was started. However, the abscess continued to recur. Eventually, the catheter was surgically removed, a tailored antibiotic regiment was started, and a 6-month patient follow-up was performed. The patient is no longer symptomatic and off of antibiotics. DISCUSSION: In abandoned VP shunts, migration into a non-sterile cavity dictates prompt removal, especially after symptoms of infection present. Additionally, careful monitoring for signs of peritonitis or other symptoms for a dedicated period of time is necessary. To the authors' best knowledge, this is the first case of an occult shunt migration through the patient's back that presented with a weeping abscess.

Gauging the feasibility of cost-sharing and medical student interest groups to reduce interview costs.

Indirect costs of the interview tour can be prohibitive. The authors sought to assess the desire of interviewees to mitigate these costs through ideas such as sharing hotel rooms and transportation, willingness to stay with local students, and the preferred modality to coordinate this collaboration. A survey link was posted on the Uncle Harvey website and the Facebook profile page of fourth-year medical students from 6 different medical schools shortly after the 2014 match day. There were a total of 156 respondents to the survey. The majority of the respondents were postinterview medical students (65.4%), but preinterview medical students (28.2%) and current residents (6.4%) also responded to the survey. Most respondents were pursuing a field other than neurosurgery (75.0%) and expressed a desire to share a hotel room and/or transportation (77.4%) as well as stay in the dorm room of a medical student at the program in which they are interviewing (70.0%). Students going into neurosurgery were significantly more likely to be interested in sharing hotel/transportation (89.2% neurosurgery vs 72.8% nonneurosurgery; p = 0.040) and in staying in the dorm room of a local student when on interviews (85.0% neurosurgery vs 57.1% nonneurosurgery; p = 0.040) than those going into other specialties. Among postinterview students, communication was preferred to be by private, email identification-only chat room. Given neurosurgery resident candidates' interest in collaborating to reduce interview costs, consideration should be given to creating a system that could allow students to coordinate cost sharing between interviewees. Moreover, interviewees should be connected to local students from neurosurgery interest groups as a resource.

Intraoperative fat placement in surgically refractory parasellar neoplasms to facilitate stereotactic radiosurgery.

BACKGROUND: In this article, we report on the technique of placing fat in between a sellar or parasellar neoplasm and the optic chiasm to possibly protect the optic chiasm from sequelae of radiation. METHODS: A review was performed on three patients, each of whom had planned subtotal resection with fat placed near their optic chiasm to facilitate future radiosurgery. RESULTS: Follow-up on our three patients varied from 6 months to 3 years post-stereotactic radiosurgery. The fat remained stable and in place. The tumors either remained stable or reduced in size. No infections, postoperative marker dependent neurological complications or unusual symptoms were encountered. CONCLUSIONS: Placement of fat between a parasellar neoplasm and the optic chiasm appears to be a safe approach to help define the tumor chiasm space, helping to facilitate radiosurgery. Future experience is warranted to determine the efficacy of this technique.

Evidence Against a Traumatic Brain Injury "July Effect": An Analysis of 3 160 452 Patients From the National Inpatient Sample.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The "July Effect" hypothesizes increased morbidity and mortality after the addition of inexperienced physicians at the beginning of an academic year. However, the impact of newer members on neurosurgical teams managing patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) has yet to be examined. This study conducted a nationwide analysis to evaluate the existence of the "July Effect" in the setting of patients with TBI. METHODS: The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Central Distributor's National Inpatient Sample data set was queried for patients with TBI using International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-9 and ICD-10 codes. Discharges were included for diagnoses of traumatic epidural, subdural, or subarachnoid hemorrhages. Only patients treated at teaching hospitals were included to ensure resident involvement in care. Patients were grouped into July admission and non-July admission cohorts. A subgroup of patients with neurotrauma undergoing any form of cranial surgery was created. Perioperative variables were recorded. Rates of different complications were assayed. Groups were compared using χ2 tests (qualitative variables) and t-tests or Mann-Whitney U-tests (quantitative variables). Logistic regression was used for binary variables. Gamma log-linked regression was used for continuous variables. RESULTS: The National Inpatient Sample database yielded a weighted average of 3 160 452 patients, of which 312 863 (9.9%) underwent surgical management. Patients admitted to the hospital in July had a 5% decreased likelihood of death (P = .027), and a 5.83% decreased likelihood of developing a complication (P < .001) compared with other months of the year. July admittance to a hospital showed no significant impact on mean length of stay (P = .392) or routine discharge (P = .147). Among patients with TBI who received surgical intervention, July admittance did not significantly affect the likelihood of death (P = .053), developing a complication (P = .477), routine discharge (P = .986), or mean length of stay (P = .385). CONCLUSION: The findings suggested that there is no "July Effect" on patients with TBI treated at teaching hospitals in the United States.

Temporal Lobe Surgery for Epilepsy in a Resource-Limited Vietnamese Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Epilepsy surgery is traditionally difficult to pursue in resource-limited countries but is nevertheless essential in the treatment of medication-refractory, surgically amenable epilepsy. METHODS: With the help of international collaboration, a successful epilepsy program was started in Vietnam. This article comprises a retrospective chart review, combined with prospective longitudinal follow-up of 35 cases of unilateral drug-resistant epilepsy in the temporal lobe who underwent temporal lobectomy, in Viet Duc University Hospital from May 2018 to September 2022. RESULTS: The female/male ratio was 0.6:1, and focal seizures with impaired awareness accounted for 97.14% of patients. Of patients with focal awareness seizures, 51.41% were localized and detected by electroencephalography. Postoperatively, 80% of patients were seizure free (Engel I) at 1 year, and the remaining 20% had worthwhile seizure improvement (Engel II). Postoperative temporal lobe pathology was categorized as follows: mesial temporal sclerosis (48.57%), focal cortical dysplasia (25.71%), and low-grade neoplasms (25.71%). Of patients, 17.14% had postoperative complications (5 infections and 1 transient extremity paresis), and there were no deaths. CONCLUSIONS: Even in low-resource environments, effective and safe surgical care can be provided for drug-resistant epilepsy caused by temporal lobe disease. This study serves as a model of international collaboration and support for future hospitals in low-resource environments to replicate.

Distal transradial access in the anatomical snuffbox for balloon guide-assisted stentriever mechanical thrombectomy: Technical note and case report.

Recent trends in neuroendovascular surgery have seen a rise in alternative access utilization. Social media feeds such as #RadialFirst or #RadialForNeuro are the beacons of a growing movement among more and more endovascular neurosurgeons, as they venture away from the traditional femoral access gravitating toward radial access. We have previously shown our distal radial access technique utilizing the snuffbox to be a reliable means of endovascular access and in addition to traditional ventral radial access provides access to the entire cerebrum. Stroke thrombectomy often encounters reticence from those who prefer transfemoral access over the radial access. Thrombectomy has been performed radially in a few series and only once previously in a case report of distal radial access for thrombectomy. Hesitance to adopt radial access for mechanical thrombectomy is often related to perceived increased access times and a lack of suitable balloon guide catheters for radial techniques. Here, we present one of the first descriptions of a distal transradial access with balloon guide flow arrest for stentriever thrombectomy.

Assessment of the NIH-supported relative citation ratio as a measure of research productivity among 1687 academic neurological surgeons.

OBJECTIVE: Publication metrics such as the Hirsch index (h-index) are often used to evaluate and compare research productivity in academia. The h-index is not a field-normalized statistic and can therefore be dependent on overall rates of publication and citation within specific fields. Thus, a metric that adjusts for this while measuring individual contributions would be preferable. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has developed a new, field-normalized, article-level metric called the "relative citation ratio" (RCR) that can be used to more accurately compare author productivity between fields. The mean RCR is calculated as the total number of citations per year of a publication divided by the average field-specific citations per year, whereas the weighted RCR is the sum of all article-level RCR scores over an author's career. The present study was performed to determine how various factors, such as academic rank, career duration, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree, and sex, impact the RCR to analyze research productivity among academic neurosurgeons. METHODS: A retrospective data analysis was performed using the iCite database. All physician faculty affiliated with Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited neurological surgery programs were eligible for analysis. Sex, career duration, academic rank, additional degrees, total publications, mean RCR, and weighted RCR were collected for each individual. Mean RCR and weighted RCR were compared between variables to assess patterns of analysis by using SAS software version 9.4. RESULTS: A total of 1687 neurosurgery faculty members from 125 institutions were included in the analysis. Advanced academic rank, longer career duration, and PhD acquisition were all associated with increased mean and weighted RCRs. Male sex was associated with having an increased weighted RCR but not an increased mean RCR score. Overall, neurological surgeons were highly productive, with a median RCR of 1.37 (IQR 0.93-1.97) and a median weighted RCR of 28.56 (IQR 7.99-85.65). CONCLUSIONS: The RCR and its derivatives are new metrics that help fill in the gaps of other indices for research output. Here, the authors found that advanced academic rank, longer career duration, and PhD acquisition were all associated with increased mean and weighted RCRs. Male sex was associated with having an increased weighted, but not mean, RCR score, most likely because of historically unequal opportunities for women within the field. Furthermore, the data showed that current academic neurosurgeons are exceptionally productive compared to both physicians in other specialties and the general scientific community.

A Moving Target? The Fate of Large Vessel Occlusion Strokes Pretreated with Intravenous Tissue Plasminogen Activator in the Era of Mechanical Thrombectomy.

BACKGROUND: Although still recommended, using intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV-tPA) for large vessel occlusions (LVOs) has been questioned in the era of mechanical thrombectomy (MT). We sought to determine the impact of IV-tPA if used before MT. METHODS: We used a single-institution, prospectively maintained stroke database from July 2017 through June 2019. All patients undergoing MT with or without IV-tPA treatment for LVO with pretreatment computed tomography angiography (CTA) head and neck were included. We compared the initial CTA images of clot location and morphology to the angiographic findings visualized on the first injection before mechanical intervention. RESULTS: Eighty patients were included. About a third (33%) received IV-tPA before thrombectomy. Among patients receiving IV-tPA, significantly more, 29% versus 5.6% without IV-tPA, experienced distal clot migration or changes in morphology between first CTA acquisition and first angiographic run before thrombectomy (P = 0.006). On logistic regression IV-tPA was the only significant predictor of clot migration (P = 0.024). Of note, clot migration due to IV-tPA use was not associated with superior recanalization rates or outcomes in this analysis (P = 0.27). Original site clot resolution was noted in 8% (2/24) of patients who received IV-tPA; however, distal M4/5 embolic cutoffs were noted in both patients. CONCLUSIONS: IV-tPA administration for LVO has a low rate of primary recanalization with risk of distal embolic phenomenon often still requiring MT. No significant changes in patient outcomes were noted in this study due to clot migration. Larger studies will be necessary to determine if IV-tPA plus MT truly benefits entire clot removal versus MT alone.

Social Media in Neurosurgery: Using ResearchGate.

BACKGROUND: Neurosurgery is a unique field, which would benefit greatly from increased global collaboration, furthering research efforts. ResearchGate is a social media platform geared toward scientists and researchers. OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the use of ResearchGate for neurosurgical research collaboration and compared the ResearchGate score with more classic bibliometrics. ResearchGate is a unifying social platform that can strengthen global research collaboration (e.g., data sharing) in the neurosurgery community. METHODS: Publicly available metrics on 3718 neurosurgery clinical faculty and residents in Canada and the United States were obtained from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Web site. The following metrics were collected: program name, clinician name, sex, attending (yes or no), resident (yes or no), postgraduate year (if resident), and ResearchGate profile (yes or no). ResearchGate score and its components and h index excluding self-citations were collected. Fellows were not included. RESULTS: Of the 3718 total individuals included, 1338 (36.0%) were present on ResearchGate, comprising 181 women (13.5%) and 1157 men (86.5%). Women and men were present in similar proportions (33.8% of women and 36.3% of men) (χ2 [1, N = 3718] = 1.26; P = 0.26). More faculty were present on ResearchGate than residents (62.4%) (χ2 [1, N = 3718] = 11.42; P = 0.001). A strong positive monotonic correlation between h index and ResearchGate score was shown (rs [1292] = 0.93; P < 0.0005). More than 400 international departments were determined. CONCLUSIONS: ResearchGate may be a useful platform to increase neurosurgical networking and research collaboration. Its novel bibliometrics are strongly correlated with more classic platforms.

Early Postoperative Complications for Elderly Patients Undergoing Single-Level Decompression for Lumbar Disc Herniation, Ligamentous Hypertrophy, or Neuroforaminal Stenosis.

BACKGROUND: Lumbar decompression for disc herniation is frequently performed on elderly patients, and this trend will continue as the population ages. Clinical reports on the complications of lumbar discectomy show good results and cost effectiveness in young or middle-aged patients. OBJECTIVE: To assess and compare the morbidity of single-level lumbar disc surgery for radicular pain in a cohort of patients greater than 80 yr of age to that of a middle-aged cohort. METHODS: A total of 9451 patients who received a single-level lumbar decompression procedure for disc displacement without myelopathy were retrospectively selected from a multicenter validated surgical database from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. A cohort with 485 patients greater than 80 yr of age (80+) was compared with a middle-aged cohort with 8966 patients between 45 and 65 yr. Preoperative comorbidity and postoperative outcome variables observed included mortality, myocardial infarction, return to the operating room, sepsis, deep vein thrombosis, transfusions, cardiac arrest necessitating cardiopulmonary resuscitation, coma greater than 24 h, urinary tract infection, acute renal failure, use of ventilator greater than 24 h, pulmonary embolism, pneumonia, wound dehiscence, and postoperative infection. RESULTS: The preoperative comorbidities and characteristics were significantly different between the middle-aged and the 80+ cohorts, with the older cohort having many more preoperative comorbidities. There was statistically significantly greater postoperative morbidity among the 80+ cohort regarding pulmonary embolism (0.8% vs 0.2%, P = .037), intra/postoperative transfusion requirement (1.9% vs 0.7%, P = .01), urinary tract infection (1.2% vs 0.3%, P = .011), and 30-d mortality (0.4% vs 0.1%, P = .046). CONCLUSION: In this large sample of patients who received a single-level lumbar decompression procedure for disc displacement without myelopathy, elderly patients, particularly with American Society of Anesthesiologists class 3 and 4, had a statistically significant increase in morbidity and mortality, but the overall risk of complications remains low.

Impact of Surgical Specialty on Outcomes Following Carotid Endarterectomy.

Background: The impact of surgeon specialty on outcomes following carotid endarterectomy (CEA) has been widely debated within the literature. Previous studies on this subject are often limited by small sample sizes, single-intuition designs, variability in patients and procedures, and potential confounding factors such as institution type and volume. Objective: To identify similarities and differences between surgeon specialties in postoperative stroke and mortality rates for patients undergoing unilateral CEAs by utilizing a large, multicenter prospective database. Methods: We utilized a large national prospective database (National Surgical Quality Inpatient database) and investigated all patients with a 1-sided, surgically naïve CEA, performed by either a general, vascular, cardiothoracic, or neurological surgeon. We employed a logistic regression analysis to control for the most salient variables identified via univariate analysis. Our primary outcomes were all-cause mortality and stroke. Results: There were 42 369 patients included across all specialties. Patients from each specialty were similar in demographics but varied in medical history. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that among the specialties only general surgeons had significantly greater postoperative stroke rates (2.3%) when compared to vascular surgeons (1.5%; P = .003, odds ratio [OR] 1.574, confidence interval [CI]: 1.168-2.121). In contrast, surgical specialty was not a significant risk factor for 30-d postoperative mortality (0% in cardiothoracic surgeons; 0.8% in vascular surgeons; 1.1% in general surgeons; 1.8% in neurosurgeons; Cardiothoracic surgeons: P = .995, OR: 0 [no incidences of mortality]; neurosurgeon: P = .118, OR: 0.2057, CI: 0.833-2.057; general surgeon P = .210, OR: 1.326, CI: 1.853-2.062). Most secondary outcomes (myocardial infarction, infection, reoperation, pneumonia) were similar between specialties (P = .339-.816). However, length of stay (P < .001), operative duration (P < .001), incidence of venous thromboembolism (P < .001), and the postoperative requirement for a ventilator greater than 48 h (P = .004) were all the greatest among neurosurgeons. Conclusion: Multidisciplinary approaches with improved communication among surgical specialties may enhance patient management and improve success after CEA. Though there were differences in postoperative stroke and other secondary outcomes, no differences were observed among specialties in mortality after unilateral CEA in more than 40 000 patients.

Endovascular Management of Spinal Dural Arteriovenous Fistulas.

Spinal vascular malformations, although rare, cause devastating disease. These malformations are commonly categorized as follows: spinal arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs), spinal hemangiomas, cavernous angiomas, and aneurysms. Spinal DAVFs (SDAVFs), or type 1 spinal AVMs, occur most frequently, representing ∼ 60 to 80% of vascular malformations of the spinal cord. While previously microsurgical treatment was considered the gold standard in the treatment of SDAVFs, recent advancements in technology-advancements of magnetic resonance imaging as a screening examination, contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography, multidetector computed tomography as preangiographic evaluations, digital subtraction angiography, diagnostic catheters, and embolization materials-have made endovascular treatment a possible option. We review the treatment of SDAVFs, primarily discussing the endovascular management of these lesions.

Utility of positron emission tomography in schwannomatosis.

Schwannomatosis is characterized by multiple non-intradermal schwannomas with patients often presenting with a painful mass in their extremities. In this syndrome malignant transformation of schwannomas is rare in spite of their large size at presentation. Non-invasive measures of assessing the biological behavior of plexiform neurofibromas in neurofibromatosis type 1 such as positron emission tomography (PET), CT scanning and MRI are well characterized but little information has been published on the use of PET imaging in schwannomatosis. We report a unique clinical presentation portraying the use of PET imaging in schwannomatosis. A 27-year-old woman presented with multiple, rapidly growing, large and painful schwannomas confirmed to be related to a constitutional mutation in the SMARCB1 complex. Whole body PET/MRI revealed numerous PET-avid tumors suggestive of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors. Surgery was performed on multiple tumors and none of them had histologic evidence of malignant transformation. Overall, PET imaging may not be a reliable predictor of malignant transformation in schwannomatosis, tempering enthusiasm for surgical interventions for tumors not producing significant clinical signs or symptoms.

Assessment of the "July Effect": outcomes after early resident transition in adult neurosurgery.

OBJECT Each July, 4th-year medical students become 1st-year resident physicians and have much greater responsibility in making management decisions. In addition, incumbent residents and fellows advance to their next postgraduate year and face greater challenges. It has been suggested that among patients who have resident physicians as members of their neurosurgical team, this transition may be associated with increased rates of morbidity and mortality, a phenomenon known as the "July Effect." In this study, the authors compared morbidity and mortality rates between the initial and later months of the academic year to determine whether there is truly a July Effect that has an impact on this patient population. METHODS The authors compared 30-day postoperative outcomes of neurosurgery performed by surgical teams that included resident physicians in training during the first academic quarter (Q1, July through September) with outcomes of neurosurgery performed with resident participation during the final academic quarter (Q4, April through June), using 2006-2012 data from the prospectively collected American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database. Regression analyses were performed on outcome data that included mortality, surgical complications, and medical complications, which were graded as mild or severe. To determine whether a July Effect was present in subgroups, secondary analyses were performed to analyze the association of outcomes with each major neurosurgical subspecialty, the postgraduate year of the operating resident, and the academic quarter during which the surgery was performed. To control for possible seasonal trends in certain diseases, the authors compared patient outcomes at academic medical centers to those at community-based hospitals, where procedures were not performed by residents. In addition, the efficiency of academic centers was compared to that of community centers in terms of operative duration and total length of hospital stay. RESULTS Overall, there were no statistically significant differences in mortality, morbidity, or efficiency between the earlier and later quarters of the academic year, a finding that also held true among neurosurgical subspecialties and among postgraduate levels of training. There was, however, a slight increase in intraoperative transfusions associated with the transitional period in July (6.41% of procedures in Q4 compared to 7.99% in Q1 of the prior calendar year; p = 0.0005), which primarily occurred in cases involving junior (2nd- to 4th-year) residents. In addition, there was an increased rate of reoperation (1.73% in Q4 to 2.19% in Q1; p < 0.0001) observed mainly among senior (5th- to 7th-year) residents in the early academic months and not paralleled in our community cohort. CONCLUSIONS There is minimal evidence for a significant July Effect in adult neurosurgery. Our results suggest that, overall, the current resident training system provides enough guidance and support during this challenging transition period.

Postoperative Complications for Elderly Patients After Single-Level Lumbar Fusions for Spondylolisthesis.

OBJECTIVE: A large-scale study on postoperative complications of lumbar fusion surgery for spondylolisthesis comparing patients >80 years old with younger patients has not been performed. The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of extreme age (>80 years old) on early postoperative outcomes after single-level lumbar fusions for spondylolisthesis. METHODS: From a validated multicenter surgical database, 2475 patients who underwent a single-level lumbar fusion procedure for spondylolisthesis were selected retrospectively. An extreme age cohort with 227 patients >80 years old was compared with a typical age cohort with 2248 patients 45-65 years old. RESULTS: The preoperative characteristics and comorbidities were different between the typical age cohort and the extreme age cohort, with older patients having more preoperative comorbidities, including a lack of independent functional health status before surgery (P < 0.001), severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (P <0.020), and hypertension requiring medication (P < 0.001). There was significantly greater morbidity among the >80 cohort regarding urinary tract infection (P = 0.008; odds ratio = 3.30; 95% confidence interval, 1.47-7.40) and intraoperative and postoperative transfusions (P < 0.001; odds ratio = 2.186; 95% confidence interval, 1.54-3.11). There was significantly greater morbidity among the younger cohort regarding cardiac arrest requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation (P = 0.043; odds ratio = 0.099; 95% confidence interval, 0.014-0.704). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first large study comparing the rates of postoperative complications of lumbar fusion surgery for spondylolisthesis in patients >80 years old versus younger patients. The data support that age alone should not exclude a patient for this procedure. However, extra caution is warranted given the slightly increased morbidity.

Association of Steroid Use with Deep Venous Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism in Neurosurgical Patients: A National Database Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a major preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients and is a widely accepted measure for quality of care. Prolonged corticosteroid therapy, which is common in neurosurgical patients, has been associated with VTE. Using a national database, we sought to determine whether corticosteroid use for >10 days was an independent risk factor for deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). METHODS: The well-validated American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was queried to evaluate the rates of VTE during the period 2006-2013 in patients undergoing neurosurgical procedures. A multivariate regression model was constructed to assess the effect of prolonged corticosteroid use on the occurrence of PE and DVT by postoperative day 30. RESULTS: Of 94,620 patients identified, 565 (0.60%) developed PE and 1057 (1.12%) developed DVT within 30 days after surgery. In the multivariate model, patients receiving corticosteroids were significantly more likely to have PE (odds ratio = 1.47, 95% confidence interval = 1.13-1.90, P = 0.004) and DVT (odds ratio = 1.55, 95% confidence interval = 1.28-1.87, P < 0.001). Other factors independently associated with development of PE and DVT included the presence of malignancy, longer hospitalization, certain infections (including pneumonia and urinary tract infections), and stroke with a neurologic deficit. CONCLUSIONS: In the neurosurgical population, prolonged courses of corticosteroids are associated with an increased risk of developing postoperative DVT and PE, even when controlling for potential confounders.

Preoperative chemotherapy and corticosteroids: independent predictors of cranial surgical-site infections.

OBJECT Preoperative corticosteroids and chemotherapy are frequently prescribed for patients undergoing cranial neurosurgery but may pose a risk of postoperative infection. Postoperative surgical-site infections (SSIs) have significant morbidity and mortality, dramatically increase the length and cost of hospitalization, and are a major cause of 30-day readmission. In patients undergoing cranial neurosurgery, there is a lack of data on the role of patient-specific risk factors in the development of SSIs. The authors of this study sought to determine whether chemotherapy and prolonged steroid use before surgery increase the risk of an SSI at postoperative Day 30. METHODS Using the national prospectively collected American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database for 2006-2012, the authors calculated the rates of superficial, deep-incisional, and organ-space SSIs at postoperative Day 30 for neurosurgery patients who had undergone chemotherapy or had significant steroid use within 30 days before undergoing cranial surgery. Trauma patients, patients younger than 18 years, and patients with a preoperative infection were excluded. Univariate analysis was performed for 25 variables considered risk factors for superficial and organ-space SSIs. To identify independent predictors of SSIs, the authors then conducted a multivariate analysis in which they controlled for duration of operation, wound class, white blood cell count, and other potential confounders that were significant on the univariate analysis. RESULTS A total of 8215 patients who had undergone cranial surgery were identified. There were 158 SSIs at 30 days (frequency 1.92%), of which 52 were superficial, 27 were deep-incisional, and 79 were organ-space infections. Preoperative chemotherapy was an independent predictor of organ-space SSIs in the multivariate model (OR 5.20, 95% CI 2.33-11.62, p < 0.0001), as was corticosteroid use (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.03-3.37, p = 0.04), but neither was a predictor of superficial or deep-incisional SSIs. Other independent predictors of organ-space SSIs were longer duration of operation (OR 1.16), wound class of ≥ 2 (clean-contaminated and further contaminated) (OR 3.17), and morbid obesity (body mass index ≥ 40 kg/m(2)) (OR 3.05). Among superficial SSIs, wound class of 3 (contaminated) (OR 6.89), operative duration (OR 1.13), and infratentorial surgical approach (OR 2.20) were predictors. CONCLUSIONS Preoperative chemotherapy and corticosteroid use are independent predictors of organ-space SSIs, even when data are controlled for leukopenia. This indicates that the disease process in organ-space SSIs may differ from that in superficial SSIs. In effect, this study provides one of the largest analyses of risk factors for SSIs after cranial surgery. The results suggest that, in certain circumstances, modulation of preoperative chemotherapy or steroid regimens may reduce the risk of organ-space SSIs and should be considered in the preoperative care of this population. Future studies are needed to determine optimal timing and dosing of these medications.

Preoperative Predictors of Spinal Infection within the National Surgical Quality Inpatient Database.

BACKGROUND: Surgical-site infections (SSIs) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality, increasing the length and cost of hospitalization. In patients undergoing spine surgery, there are limited large-scale data on patient-specific risk factors for SSIs. METHODS: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was reviewed for all spinal operations between 2006 and 2012. The rates of 30-day SSIs were calculated, and univariate analysis of selected preoperative risk factors was performed. Multivariate analysis was then used to identify independent predictors of SSIs. RESULTS: A total of 1110 of the 60,179 patients (1.84%) had a postoperative wound infection. There were 527 (0.87%) deep and 590 (0.98%) superficial infections. Patients with infections had greater rates of sepsis, longer lengths of stay, and more return visits to the operating room. Independent predictors of infection were female sex, inpatient status, insulin-dependent diabetes, preoperative steroid use greater than 10 days, hematocrit less than 35, body mass index greater than 30, wound class, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, and operative duration. CONCLUSIONS: Analysis of a large national patient database revealed many independent risk factors for SSIs after spinal surgery. Some of these risk factors can be modified preoperatively to reduce the risk of postoperative infection.

Tuberous Sclerosis Health Care Utilization Based on the National Inpatient Sample Database: A Review of 5655 Hospitalizations.

INTRODUCTION: Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) has an incidence of 1/6000 in the general population. Overall care may be complex and costly. We examine trends in health care utilization and outcomes of patients with TSC over the last decade. METHODS: The National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database for inpatient hospitalizations was searched for admission of patients with TSC. RESULTS: During 2000-2010, the NIS recorded 5655 patients with TSC. Most patients were admitted to teaching hospitals (71.7%). Over time, the percentage of craniotomies performed per year remained stable (P = 0.351). Relevant diagnoses included neuro-oncologic disease (5.4%), hydrocephalus (6.5%), and epilepsy (41.2%). Hydrocephalus significantly increased length of stay and hospital charges. A higher percentage of patients who underwent craniotomy had hydrocephalus (29.8% vs. 5.3%; P < 0.001), neuro-oncologic disease (43.5% vs. 3.4%; P < 0.001), other cranial diseases (4.2% vs. 1.2%; P < 0.001), and epilepsy (61.4% vs. 40.1%; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our study identifies aspects of inpatient health care utilization, outcomes, and cost of a large number of patients with TSC. These aspects include related diagnoses and procedures that contribute to longer length of stay, increased hospital cost, and increased in-hospital mortality, which can inform strategies to reduce costs and improve care of patients with TSC.