History of African women in neurosurgery.

The number of women in the medical field has increased in Africa over the last few decades, yet the underrepresentation of women within neurosurgery has been a recurrent theme. Of all surgical disciplines, neurosurgery is among the least equitable, and the rate of increase in female surgeons lags behind other surgical disciplines such as general surgery. This historical review provides an overview of the history of women in neurosurgery and their current status on the African continent. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first article to provide such an overview.

Glial heterotopia of the orbit: a rare cause of proptosis.

BACKGROUND: Glial heterotopia is defined as presence of normal glial tissue in an unusual location without connection with the brain. It is a very rare clinical entity occuring mostly in the head and neck region which is generally present at birth. Orbital location is very rare. CASE REPORT: We report a case of a 4-month-old girl presenting congenital proptosis with progressive increase. CT scan revealed an intraorbital mass without bony defect. The patient was operated, and resection was subtotal. Histologically, the tumor was composed of glial tissue with plexus choroid and pathologist concluded glial heterotopia. The child is under constant medical supervision because recurrences can be observed after incomplete resection; she had no new clinical signs at 18 months follow-up.

Needs of Young African Neurosurgeons and Residents: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction: Africa has many untreated neurosurgical cases due to limited access to safe, affordable, and timely care. In this study, we surveyed young African neurosurgeons and trainees to identify challenges to training and practice. Methods: African trainees and residents were surveyed online by the Young Neurosurgeons Forum from April 25th to November 30th, 2018. The survey link was distributed via social media platforms and through professional society mailing lists. Univariate and bivariate data analyses were run and a P-value < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Results: 112 respondents from 20 countries participated in this study. 98 (87.5%) were male, 63 (56.3%) were from sub-Saharan Africa, and 52 (46.4%) were residents. 39 (34.8%) had regular journal club sessions at their hospital, 100 (89.3%) did not have access to cadaver dissection labs, and 62 (55.4%) had never attended a WFNS-endorsed conference. 67.0% of respondents reported limited research opportunities and 58.9% reported limited education opportunities. Lack of mentorship (P = 0.023, Phi = 0.26), lack of access to journals (P = 0.002, Phi = 0.332), and limited access to conferences (P = 0.019, Phi = 0.369) were associated with the country income category. Conclusion: This survey identified barriers to education, research, and practice among African trainees and young neurosurgeons. The findings of this study should inform future initiatives aimed at reducing the barriers faced by this group.

Women in Neurosurgery (WIN): Barriers to Progress, World WIN Directory and the Way Forward.

Women in Neurosurgery (WIN) have come a long way and are making inroads in every neurosurgical subspecialty. There has been a worldwide increase in the number of female neurosurgeons both in the training and practice. Although this is a welcome trend, gender equality at work in terms of opportunities, promotions, and pay scales are yet to be attained. This is more apparent in the developing and underdeveloped nations. Barriers for a female neurosurgeon exist in every phase before entering residency, during training, and at workplace. In the neurosurgical specialty, only a few women are in chief academic and leadership positions, and this situation needs to improve. WIN should be motivated to pursue fellowships, sub-specialty training, research, and academic activities. Furthermore, men should come forward to mentor women, only then the gender debates will disappear and true excellence in neurosurgery can be attained. This article reviews the issues that are relevant in the present era focusing on the barriers faced by female neurosurgeons in the developing and underdeveloped countries and the possible solutions to achieve gender equality in neurosurgery. The authors also present the data from the World WIN Directory collected as a part of Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons-WINS project 2019. These numbers are expected to grow as the WIN progress and add value to the neurosurgical community at large.

Georgette Kidess, the First Female Neurosurgeon in Palestine.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to detail the background, training, and career of Dr. Georgette Kidess, the first and still the only female neurosurgeon in Palestine. In addition, we mention the obstacles that women face during their neurosurgical career and how to overcome them. Also, we discuss different methods to attract female medical students to neurosurgery. METHODS: Information was gathered only from direct face-to-face interviews with Dr. Kidess. RESULTS: Georgette Kidess was born on May 2, 1952, in Nablus, Palestine. She received the degree of Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) at Eberhard Karls Universität, Tübingen, Germany in 1979. She worked as a neurosurgeon at the Hadassah EinKarem Hospital in Jerusalem and subsequently established the first neurosurgical department at the Ramallah Governmental Hospital in Ramallah in 1986. Thereafter, she has continued a career in private practice, currently at Saint Luke's Hospital, Nablus. Dr. Kidess played a major part in establishing neurosurgery in Palestine. She was among the founders of the Palestinian Neurosurgical Society in 2014. CONCLUSIONS: In this article, we recount Dr. Kidess's contributions and achievements to neurosurgery in Palestine. Her commitment, persistence, and diligence enabled her to overcome great odds and become the first female neurosurgeon in Palestine. We hope that her story will inspire and open the doors for subsequent women to enter and enhance neurosurgery, especially in the Middle East.

Extradural spinal arachnoid cyst occurring in a child: a case report.

Extradural archnoid spinal cysts are rare lesions. Their localization is usually the thoracic spine. Clinically, they are a cause of spinal cord and/ or nerve roots compression. The diagnosis is made by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The pathophysiology is not well known and seems to be different from intradural lesions. The best treatment is surgery. We report the case of a 5-year-old girl with spinal cord compression symptoms who was treated by open surgery. We performed dural defect repair. The outcome was good in the immediate post operative period without complication and total recovery.