Microsurgical resection of a large petroclival meningioma through an extended retrosigmoid approach: how I do it.

BACKGROUND: Petroclival meningiomas are challenging tumors. Several skull base approaches have been proposed in the last decades, with variable rates of postoperative morbidity and extent of resection. METHODS: We herein reported the step-by-step microsurgical resection of a large petroclival meningioma through an extended retrosigmoid approach. Detailed surgical technique has been accompanied by a 2D operative video. CONCLUSION: The extended retrosigmoid approach allowed for a safe gross total resection of the tumor, as confirmed by the postoperative MRI. The patient did not experience any new postoperative deficit, despite a transient diplopia, and was discharged on postoperative day 7.

Prevalence of Postoperative Complications of Autologous and Heterologous Cranioplasty in the Pediatric Population: A Systematic Review of the Literature.

INTRODUCTION: Cranial reconstruction (CR) is a neurosurgical procedure performed to restore the cranial vault after a decompressive craniectomy. There are contrasting reports from the literature about the complications related to the use of heterologous materials for CR in the pediatric population. In this study, the authors try to better define such a rate of adverse events for autologous and heterologous materials. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic review of articles published up to December 2021 was performed. Studies were included if they reported the specific use of cranioplasty materials following craniectomy in patients younger than 18 years of age and had a minimum follow-up of at least 1 year. RESULTS: A total of 20 studies were selected. A total of 544 cases were included, of which 422 (77.6%) were with heterologous materials and 122 (22.4%) with autologous bone. The mean average age was 9.5 years. Polyetheretherketone and polymethylmethacrylate reported 29% and 33.3%, respectively, of complications, but only 3% and 5.6% of surgical revision. PHA reported a rate of 11.9%. Titanium reported 9.2% of complications and 4.1% of surgical revisions. Porous polyethylene had a complication rate of 36.4% and a revision rate of 0%. CONCLUSION: There is still no perfect material for CR. It seems that heterologous materials are superior to autologous bone for CR in children, and we may consider, whenever economic conditions will allow it, to use alloplastic material as first-line in small children.

Long-term follow-up of custom-made porous hydroxyapatite cranioplasty in adult patients: a multicenter European study. Can we trust self-reported complications?

BACKGROUND: Cranioplasty is a surgical intervention aiming to re-establish the integrity of skull defects. Autologous bone and different heterologous materials are used for this purpose, with various reported related complications. The aim of the study was to evaluate the complication rate in a multicentric cohort of patients underwent porous hydroxyapatite (PHA) cranioplasty implantation and to assess the validity of company post-market clinical analysis. METHODS: Authors analyzed a company-based register of 6279 PHA cranioplasty implanted all over the world. In these adult patients only self-reported complications were available. We then obtained the data of adult patients treated with custom-made porous HA prostheses (CustomBone Service) in 20 institutions from different European countries through an on-site interview with the physicians in charge of the patients (N.=494). The endpoints were the incidence of adverse events and of related implant removal. RESULTS: The groups of patients had similar demographics characteristics. The average follow-up was 26.7 months. A significantly higher number of complications was recorded in the group of patients underwent on-site interview. Thirty-nine complications were reported (7.89%) with an explantation rate of 4.25% (21 cases) in the series, compared to the data reported from the Company (complications rate of 3.3% and explantation rate of 3.1%). The most common complications were infection (4.86%), hematomas (1.22%), fractures (1.01%), mobilization (0.4%) and scar retraction (0.4%). CONCLUSIONS: Our data confirm that porous HA cranioplasty is at least as effective as other heterologous materials to repair cranial defects. Another interesting finding is that self-reporting complications by surgeons does not give a precise picture of the real rate of complications of the devices. These data in future studies need to be re-confirmed with on-site interviews.