Venous sinus stenting lowers the intracranial pressure in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension.

AIMS: We report the cerebrospinal fluid opening pressure (CSF-OP) measurements obtained before and after venous sinus stenting (VSS) in 50 patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension. METHODS: The CSF-OP was measured with a spinal tap 3 months before and 3 months after treatment. All data were prospectively collected and included patient demographics, weight (kg), body mass index (BMI), acetazolamide daily dosage (mg), procedural details, complications, venous sinus pressures (mm Hg), trans-stenotic pressure gradient (mm Hg), transverse sinus symmetry, and type of venous sinus stenosis. RESULTS: The average pretreatment CSF-OP was 37 cm H2O (range 25-77) and the average post-treatment CSF-OP was 20.2 cm H2O (range 10-36), with an average reduction of 16.8 cm H2O (P<0.01). The post-treatment CSF-OP was less than 25 cm H2O in 40/50 patients. The average acetazolamide daily dose decreased from 950 mg to 300 mg at the time of 3-month follow-up (P<0.01). No patient required an increase in acetazolamide dose 3 months after VSS. The average weight before treatment was 95.4 kg with an average BMI of 35.41. There was an average increase in body weight of 1.1 kg at the 3-month follow-up with an average increase in BMI of 0.35 (P=0.03). CONCLUSIONS: We provide evidence that there is a significant decrease in CSF-OP in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension 3 months after VSS, independent of acetazolamide usage or weight loss.

Managing Arterial Injury in Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery: Case Series and Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: The most feared complications following endoscopic endonasal skull base surgery are arterial vascular injuries. Previously published literature is restricted to internal carotid artery injuries. The ideal method for controlling arterial bleeding during this kind of procedure is debated, and a variety of techniques have been advocated. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the management and outcome following intraoperative arterial injury during endoscopic endonasal skull base surgery. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of a prospectively acquired database of consecutive endonasal endoscopic surgeries at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center from December 2003 to June 2015 and identified all cases of arterial injury. RESULTS: Of 800 cases, there were 4 arterial injuries (0.5%), of which only one involved the internal carotid artery (ICA), for a risk of 0.125%. The other 3 involved the ophthalmic artery, anterior communicating artery, and A1 segment of the anterior cerebral artery. In all cases, definitive treatment involved occlusion of the artery either through endovascular means (3 cases) or direct surgical ligation (1 case). Neurological examinations were unchanged after arterial repair with only 1 small asymptomatic stroke. Literature review identified 7336 patients, of which there were 25 arterial injuries, of which 19 were of the ICA. Hence, the total rate of arterial injury was 0.34% and the rate of ICA injury was 0.26%. Arterial sacrifice was the only reliable method for managing arterial injury. CONCLUSION: Arterial injury is an uncommon event after endoscopic endonasal surgery. Attempts at arterial repair are rarely successful, and vessel sacrifice is the most reliable technique at this point.

Spinal intraarterial chemotherapy: interim results of a Phase I clinical trial.

OBJECT Despite advances in therapies using radiation oncology and spinal oncological surgery, there is a subgroup of patients with spinal metastases who suffer from progressive or recurrent epidural disease and remain at risk for neurological compromise. In this paper the authors describe their initial experience with a novel therapeutic approach that consists of intraarterial (IA) infusion of chemotherapy to treat progressive spinal metastatic disease. METHODS The main inclusion criterion was the presence of progressive, metastatic epidural disease to the spine causing spinal canal compromise in patients who were not candidates for the standard treatments of radiation therapy and/or surgery. All tumor histological types were eligible for this trial. Using the transfemoral arterial approach and standard neurointerventional techniques, all patients were treated with IA infusion of melphalan in the arteries supplying the epidural tumor. The protocol allowed for up to 3 procedures repeated at 3- to 6-week intervals. Outcome measures included physiological measures: 1) periprocedural complications according to the National Cancer Institute's Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events; and 2) MRI to assess for tumor response. RESULTS Nine patients with progressive spinal metastatic disease and cord compression were enrolled in a Phase I clinical trial of selective IA chemotherapy. All patients had metastatic disease from solid organs and were not candidates for further radiation therapy or surgery. A total of 19 spinal intraarterial chemotherapy (SIAC) procedures were performed, and the follow-up period ranged from 1 to 7 months (median 3 months). There was 1 serious adverse event (febrile neutropenia). Local tumor control was seen in 8 of 9 patients, whereas tumor progression at the treated level was seen in 1 patient. CONCLUSIONS These preliminary results support the hypothesis that SIAC is feasible and safe.

Enucleation vs Ophthalmic Artery Chemosurgery for Advanced Intraocular Retinoblastoma: A Retrospective Analysis.

IMPORTANCE: Ophthalmic artery chemosurgery (OAC) has emerged as a primary treatment for advanced-stage retinoblastoma. To our knowledge, the incidence of orbital recurrence in eyes treated with OAC has not been described. OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of orbital recurrence following enucleation or OAC as primary treatments for advanced-stage retinoblastoma. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Single-institution cohort study with retrospective record review at an academic ophthalmic oncology practice. A total of 140 eyes in 135 patients who presented between February 14, 2006, and March 4, 2014, and were classified as having Reese-Ellsworth group 5 or International Classification of Retinoblastoma (Children's Oncology Group) group D or E retinoblastoma were included; 63 patients (63 eyes) were primarily treated with enucleation and 72 patients (77 eyes) were primarily treated with OAC. This analysis was conducted between August 1, 2014, and March 1, 2015. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Incidence of and time to orbital recurrence, metastasis, and death. RESULTS: There were 5 orbital recurrences (incidence, 7.9%) in the primary enucleation group and 1 orbital recurrence (incidence, 1.3%) in the primary OAC group during median follow-up times of 42.6 months (range, 6.2-97.1 months) and 38.7 months (range, 9.0-104.3 months), respectively. The 24-month Kaplan-Meier estimate for orbital recurrence-free survival was worse for the enucleation group (92.1%; 95% CI, 82.0-96.7) than for the OAC group (100%) (log-rank test, P = .049). The enucleation group had 5 cases of metastatic disease (7.9%) and 2 deaths (3.2%). In the OAC group, there were 3 cases of metastatic disease (4.2%) and no deaths. Kaplan-Meier analysis of metastasis-free survival and overall survival yielded no differences between the 2 treatment groups. Analysis of a number of features of the 2 groups revealed more eyes with iris neovascularization in the enucleation group (25.4%) than in the OAC group (5.2%) and more eyes with group E retinoblastoma in the enucleation group (87.3%) than in the OAC group (29.9%), although neither of these factors was an independent predictor of orbital relapse in a Cox proportional hazards model. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this single-institution retrospective study of advanced intraocular retinoblastoma, there were more orbital recurrences in the group primarily treated with enucleation. Ophthalmic artery chemosurgery for advanced intraocular retinoblastoma was not found to increase the chance of orbital recurrence, metastatic disease, or death compared with primary enucleation.

A retrospective analysis of severe intraoperative respiratory compliance changes during ophthalmic arterial chemosurgery for retinoblastoma.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Ophthalmic arterial chemosurgery for retinoblastoma has been associated with intraoperative decreases in respiratory compliance. Through the analysis of data from computerized records, we objectively defined severe respiratory compliance events and correlated them with demographic and clinical information in patients undergoing this procedure. METHODS: Data were collected from ophthalmic arterial chemosurgery cases from 2006 to 2013. Intraoperative PIP, PEEP, TV, SpO2 , and EtCO2 were analyzed. Compliance changes, desaturations, decreases in EtCO2 , and clinical outcomes were assessed. RESULTS: Respiratory compliance decreases with a bimodal distribution. Severe events were defined as exhibiting a minimum compliance decrease of 40%. Seventy-eight of 122 children (64%) experienced a severe compliance event during at least one treatment, and it occurred in 137/468 cases (29%). A subset of 94 children had complete or at least the first three records. The incidence of a severe respiratory compliance event in this subgroup was 17/94 (18%) on the first and 84/261 (32%) on subsequent procedures. The probability of developing a severe respiratory compliance event on a subsequent procedure was 0.40 if the child developed it on the first procedure, 0.30 if he did not; this difference was not significant. The incidence of desaturation below 90% with severe respiratory compliance events was 0.20; the incidence of a 30% drop in EtCO2 was 0.34. No morbidity, no extended recovery, and no admissions were associated with intraoperative severe respiratory compliance events. We found no correlation between history, age, sex, weight or allergies, and intraoperative severe respiratory compliance events. CONCLUSIONS: Here, most patients experienced a severe respiratory compliance event during at least one of their procedures. Overall incidence was 29% and was more likely on subsequent procedures. A severe respiratory compliance event at the initial procedure was poorly predictive of its occurrence on subsequent procedures. No morbidity was associated with intraoperative severe respiratory compliance events.