[Spinal stenosis at the level of atlas in a boy with Down syndrome. A case report and literature review]. / Estenosis de canal a nivel del atlas en un niño con síndrome de Down. Presentación de un caso y revisión de la literatura.

INTRODUCTION: The appearance of congenital anomalies at the level of atlas is frequent in patients with neural alterations, as well as in the Down syndrome. The presence of clinical stenosis for alteration in the posterior arch of C1 without a previous atlantoaxial subluxation hasn't been described in the literature thus far. CASE REPORT: We report an exceptional case of myelopathy due to compression at the level of the atlas in a 5-year-old boy with Down syndrome provoked by a developmental anomaly of the posterior arch of C1. A posterior laminectomy was achieved at that level with improvement of the previous symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: We have to pay special attention in children with syndromes associated with chondrogenesis alterations, as in the case of those with Down syndrome, to benefit from early treatment, since in most of the time they are diagnosed when symptoms are very severe.

Recurrent meningeal inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor: a case report and literature review.

An inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a rare lesion with an uncertain prognosis and a disorder difficult to classify. IMTs are a heterogeneous group of lesions, sometimes indistinguishable from meningiomas and other expanding or inflammatory lesions of the central nervous system. This report presents a patient with IMT, who presented with recurrent retroocular pain radiating to the occipital region and no neurologic deficits. He had early recurrence in spite of total resection of the lesion. The clinical profile of 18 patients with either progression or recurrence has been reviewed.

Nocardia farcinica abscess of the cerebellum in an immunocompetent patient: A case report and review of the literature.

Nocardial brain abscesses are uncommon and rarely occur in patients without predisposing factors. They may be mistaken for gliomas or necrotic metastases, and surgical intervention may be required to make the diagnosis. We report the first case of Nocardia farcinica cerebellar abscess in a patient without immunosuppression. He presented to us with headache and instability beginning a week before. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a cystic lesion located at the right cerebellar hemisphere, hypointense in T1 and hyperintense in T2, with a fine wall that enhanced after injection of gadolinium. Image tests also showed a cavitated lesion at the upper lobule of the right lung. The patient underwent craniotomy and drainage of the cerebellar abscess. Initial post-operative treatment with linezolid produced a limited response. He was re-operated and vancomycin, imipenem and ciprofloxacin were added with an excellent outcome of the cerebellar and lung lesions.

Establishing percent resection and residual volume thresholds affecting survival and recurrence for patients with newly diagnosed intracranial glioblastoma.

INTRODUCTION: Surgery is first-line therapy for glioblastoma, and there is evidence that gross total resection is associated with improved survival. Gross total resection, however, is not always possible, and relationships among extent (percent) of resection (EOR), residual volume (RV), and survival are unknown. The goals were to evaluate whether there is an association between EOR and RV with survival and recurrence and to establish minimum EOR and maximum RV thresholds. METHODS: Adult patients who underwent primary glioblastoma surgery from 2007 to 2011 were retrospectively reviewed. Three-dimensional volumetric tumor measurements were made. Multivariate proportional hazards regression analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between EOR and RV with survival and recurrence. RESULTS: Of 259 patients, 203 (78%) died and 156 (60%) had tumor recurrence. The median survival and progression-free survival were 13.4 and 8.9 months, respectively. The median (interquartile range) pre- and postoperative tumor volumes were 32.2 (14.0-56.3) and 2.1 (0.0-7.9) cm(3), respectively. EOR was independently associated with survival (hazard ratio [HR], 0.995; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.990-0.998; P = .008) and recurrence (HR [95% CI], 0.992 [0.983-0.998], P = .005). The minimum EOR threshold for survival (P = .0006) and recurrence (P = .005) was 70%. RV was also associated with survival (HR [95% CI], 1.019 [1.006-1.030], P = .004) and recurrence (HR [95% CI], 1.024 [1.001-1.044], P = .03). The maximum RV threshold for survival (P = .01) and recurrence (P = .01) was 5 cm(3). CONCLUSION: This study shows for the first time that both EOR and RV are significantly associated with survival and recurrence, where the thresholds are 70% and 5 cm(3), respectively. These findings may help guide surgical and adjuvant therapies aimed at optimizing outcomes for glioblastoma patients.

Pseudomeningocele after traumatic nerve root avulsion. A novel technique to close the fistula.

Traumatic brachial plexus complete avulsions and the subsequent formation of pseudomeningoceles are a well-known entity that usually remains asymptomatic. Pseudomeningocele is due to the dural sleeve encasing the damaged roots and the spinal liquid that may accumulate locally or in the supraclavicular soft tissues. The pseudomeningocele, added to the associated lesion of the plexus and usually the surrounding vessels, may become difficult to manage. We describe the novel management of a traumatic pseudomeningocele using an endovascular technique.