[Acupuncture treatment for a patient with prolonged consciousness disturbance after a brain tumor surgery].

Acupuncture has long been applied as a therapeutic technique in China, Japan, Korea and other countries. Recently, its application began to be extended to the treatment of neural disorders. We experienced a 13-year-old boy with prolonged consciousness disturbance after a pineal tumor surgery and muscle contracture of lower extremity by long-term recumbency. We applied him acupuncture treatment for 4 months which was effective to alleviate these symptoms. Repeated IMP SPECT showed improvement of the cerebral blood flow (CBF) during the course of acupuncture therapy. Acupuncture was effective to improve prolonged coma after a brain surgery and also muscle contracture by long-lasting recumbency. CBF showed a slight increase along with the recovery of consciousness suggesting a strong relevance between CBF and improvement of these symptoms.

SIADH closely associated with non-functioning pituitary adenoma.

We demonstrated severe hyponatremia in a 68 year-old man who had pituitary tumor. He had poor appetite and was disoriented. Tests revealed hyponatremia of 110 mmol/l, and he was admitted to Jichi Medical School Omiya Medical Center to undergo further tests. Physical findings revealed disturbance of consciousness with Japan Coma Scale I-2. There was neither dehydration nor edema. Laboratory data showed a serum sodium level of 112 mmol/l; plasma osmolality, 219 mmol/kg; and urinary osmolality, 555 mmol/kg. Plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) level was 1.6 pmol/l despite the marked hypoosmolality. Anterior pituitary function was normal. Brain magnetic resonance imaging showed a pituitary tumor of 20 x 18 x 20 mm in size, which pushed the pituitary stalk upward. After the adenomectomy, serum sodium level was kept normal without any treatment. Histology showed basophilic adenoma. These findings indicate that local pituitary tumor may cause exaggerated secretion of AVP, resulting in the syndrome of inappropriate secretion of antidiuretic hormone (SIADH).

Monostotic fronto-orbital fibrous dysplasia with convulsion--case report.

A 28-year-old man presented with monostotic fronto-orbital fibrous dysplasia associated with convulsions. Signs of meningeal irritation were observed. Computed tomography (CT) showed right frontal sinusitis, and destruction from the inner to outer table with expansion of the diploic space. T1- and T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging showed an abnormal low-intensity mass, with heterogeneous gadolinium enhancement. Although the meningitis resolved, signs of infection continued for 2 months due to sinusitis. Treatment of the right frontal sinusitis was undertaken, accompanied by open biopsy. The histological diagnosis was fibrous dysplasia. Once the infection had completely resolved, orbitofrontal reconstruction was undertaken. Cranioplasty was carried out using cranial bone cement. Three-dimensional CT was valuable to show the likely postoperative result.

Leptomeningeal dissemination of pilocytic astrocytoma via hematoma in a child. Case report.

A case of recurrent pilocytic astrocytoma with leptomeningeal dissemination (LMD) is described. A cerebellar tumor was diagnosed in a 3-year-old boy, in whom resection was performed. When the boy was 6 years of age, recurrence was treated with surgery and local radiotherapy. At age 13 years, scoliosis was present, but the patient was asymptomatic. Twelve years after initial surgery LMD was demonstrated in the lumbar spinal region without recurrence of the original tumor. This tumor also was subtotally removed. During the procedure, a hematoma was observed adjacent to the tumor, but the border was clear. Histological examination of the spinal cord tumor showed features similar to those of the original tumor. There were no tumor cells in the hematoma. The MIB-1 labeling index indicated no malignant change compared with the previous samples. Radiotherapy was performed after the surgery. The importance of early diagnosis and management of scoliosis is emphasized, and the peculiar pattern of dissemination of the pilocytic astrocytoma and its treatment are reviewed.