Subacute necrotizing polioencephalopathy.

A previously healthy 20-year-old woman died of a progressive cerebral disease that involved the brain stem and the cerebral hemispheres successively. The illness ran its course in 80 days. Postmortem examination showed a multifocal necrotizing encephalopathy that chiefly affected gray matter structures and that was mainly located in the brain stem and cerebral cortex. The cause and pathogenesis remain unknown.

Malignant gliomas of the brain. A retrospective study.

A retrospective study of 72 consecutive and nonrandomized patients with malignant glial tumors is presented. The influence of age, sex, location of tumor, initial presenting symptoms, symptomatic preoperative interval, reoperation, extent of tumor removal, histological subtype of tumor, lymphocyte infiltration, and different treatments upon survival time has been evaluated and statistically analyzed. Age was inversely associated with survival with a strong statistical significance (p = 0.0001). Headache was the most common (67%) initial symptom; aphasia and seizure were both present in 45.3% of patients. Initial presenting symptoms had no effect upon survival. Parietal lobe and lymphocyte infiltration had marginally negative effects upon survival (p = 0.097 and p = 0.10 respectively). The amount of tumor removal was marginally associated with an improved survival (p = 0.07). Radiation therapy was strongly associated with an improved survival time (p = 0.0007). The addition of chemotherapy did not affect the survival (perhaps reflecting the small number of patients and inadequate chemotherapy). There was an obvious beneficial effect of reoperation upon survival time, if the patient lived and underwent reoperation later than 16 months after the initial operation (slow-growing tumor). Although median and mean survival times (10 and 20.34 months respectively, SD 7.45 months) were similar to most series reported, our rates of survival (20%, 12.5%, and 7.5% at 2, 3, and 5 years, respectively) were notably higher.

Multifocal brain radionecrosis masquerading as tumor dissemination.

The authors report on an autopsy-proven case of multifocal widespread radionecrosis involving both cerebral hemispheres and masquerading as tumor dissemination on a CT scan done 13 months after complete resection of an oligodendroglioma followed by radiation therapy. This case demonstrates that radiation damage may be present in a CT scan as a multifocal, disseminated lesion. Since the survival of brain-tumor patients who have undergone radiation therapy is prolonged by aggressive therapy, the incidence and variability of radiation-induced complications in such cases is likely to increase. For similar reasons, the radionecrosis in such cases should be taken into consideration. A short review of the CT scan findings and diagnostic and therapeutic considerations in a case of widespread radionecrosis is presented. The need for appropriate diagnosis and subsequent life-saving management is emphasized.

Microsurgical anatomy and related techniques to an anterolateral transthoracic approach to thoracic disc herniations.

The microsurgical anatomy and related techniques of a modified anterolateral transthoracic approach to the thoracic disc space is presented. This procedure was performed on at least three thoracic levels of 12 cadavers within a few hours after death. Such an approach allows a safe decompression of the spinal cord and roots under full visual control. There is minimal risk to radiculomedullary vessels, minimal osteoligamental resection, and no compromise of stability of the spinal column. Therefore, this procedure does not require surgical stabilization of the spinal column, postoperative bracing, or prolonged bed rest. The difference between this approach and anterolateral transthoracic, posterolateral, and transpedicular approaches is discussed.

Prognostic value of round cell (lymphocyte) infiltration in malignant gliomas.

The biopsy specimens of 342 patients with malignant glioma were evaluated to determine the extent and prognostic significance of round cell infiltration within these representative tissues: (a) tumor, (b) peritumoral, (c) hypervascular, (d) necrotic, and (e) normal tissue. Thirty-six percent of all biopsy specimens showed at least one tissue area with round cell infiltration. Patients in age groups 0 to 25 years and 71 years and older tended to show less round cell infiltration than did patients 41 to 55 years old. The presence of round cell infiltration in tissue was associated with a poor prognosis. Patients showing any infiltration had mean survival times of 8.4 months as opposed to 11.9 months for those showing no infiltration. The relationship between round cell infiltration and poor prognosis is true, irrespective of postoperative therapy, sex, and age.

Possible influence of cerebrospinal fluid pressure on the growth of a third ventricle choroid plexus papilloma.

A case of histologically proven benign choroid plexus papilloma of the third ventricle in a 4-month-old male child is reported. The clinical symptoms and the neuroradiologic findings were those of a supratentorial hydrocephalus. A shunting procedure was performed after refusal by the family of a direct surgical approach. Subsequently there was a four- to fivefold increase in volume of this tumor in less than 4 months under decreased cerebrospinal fluid pressure. The purpose of this report is first to add a case to 27 cases of papilloma of the choroid plexus of third ventricle reported in the medical literature. Secondly to underline a possible influence of intraventricular pressure on the growth of a histologically benign intraventricular papilloma. Subsequently, the question of radiation therapy may be raised, if total removal of the papilloma is not obtained, especially in view of decreased cerebrospinal fluid pressure provided by the previous shunting procedure.

Intraarterial 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea chemotherapy for the treatment of malignant gliomas of the brain: a preliminary report.

In a clinical trial, 10 patients with malignant gliomas underwent partial resection of their tumors and were treated by intraarterial 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) chemotherapy. The drug was given at least 1 month after the completion of postoperative radiotherapy in total doses of 270-280 mg/m2 in two sessions separated by a 48-hour interval (the two sessions with interval were equal to one course). This therapy was repeated every 8-10 weeks. Four patients had three courses and the other six patients had two courses of chemotherapy. This therapy was the only antitumor chemotherapy for this group of patients. Our preliminary results demonstrate the safety of this new procedure and suggest that intraarterial BCNU chemotherapy may be more effective, and has a better tolerance and less toxicity, than intravenous BCNU chemotherapy. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that, in the case of one patient, higher antitumor activity resulted from intraarterial BCNU chemotherapy as compared to intravenous BCNU therapy.

[Post-radiotherapy brain lesions]. / Lésions cérébrales post-radiothérapiques.

Recurrent symptoms or signs during or after therapeutic brain irradiation may be due to the progression of the irradiated tumour, necrosis of normal brain tissue, necrosis of tumour, or all three of these. We have studied 12 patients with pathologically proven radiation-induced damage of normal brain tissue. All patients were exposed to a therapeutic range of radiation for an intra or extracranial tumour. Seven patients were exposed to 280 to 300 rads per day, three times weekly to a total dose of 4500 to 6000 rads (fractionated). Five patients received 750 to 850 rads per day, on days 1, 3, 21 and 23 (split-course). The diagnosis of radiation-induced brain lesions is difficult. CT scan is the most informative diagnostic procedure. The various patterns of radiation-induced brain lesions on CT are nonspecific. However where there is sufficient clinical data suggesting radiation-induced brain lesions, and a good correlation between CT abnormalities and the maximum delivered dose, on dose distribution maps of the brain exposed to a high cumulative radiation dose, the diagnosis may be accepted. The time interval between the end of radiation therapy and the occurrence of radiation-induced lesions was shorter in the patient group exposed to a split-course therapy (median time: 9.6 months) as opposed to the patient group exposed to a fractionated radiation (median time: 45 months). Pathologically the lesions corresponded to either a demyelinated area within the white matter with minimal vasculopathy or an area of coagulation necrosis with varying degrees of necrosis, delamination or hyalinosis of small blood vessels.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Radiation necrosis of the brain: time of onset and incidence related to total dose and fractionation of radiation.

Clinical deterioration during or after brain irradiation may be due to progression of neoplasm or radiation induced necrosis of the neoplasm and/or of normal brain tissues, or a combination of all. Eight patients with histologically documented radiation induced lesions of the brain are included in this study. The radiation therapy included the fractional schedule, group A, who received 280 to 300 rads daily, to a total dose of 4500 to 5000 rads and weekly exposure did not exceed 900 rads. Group B patients were exposed to 850 rads, daily dose on day 1, 3, 21 and 23 to a total dose of 3400 rads. The incidence of radiation induced lesions of brain was 3.4% in patients group A and 8.7% in group B patients (without statistical significance). The median time of onset of these lesions after completion of radiation therapy was significantly shorter in group B patients (8.5 months) as opposed to group A patients (21 months).