COVID-19-related acute necrotizing encephalopathy with brain stem involvement in a patient with aplastic anemia.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a novel case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-associated acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) in a patient with aplastic anemia where there was early brain stem-predominant involvement. METHODS: Evaluation of cause, clinical symptoms, and treatment response. RESULTS: A 59-year-old woman with a background of transfusion-dependent aplastic anemia presented with seizures and reduced level of consciousness 10 days after the onset of subjective fever, cough, and headache. Nasopharyngeal swab testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) was positive, and CT during admission demonstrated diffuse swelling of the brain stem. She required intubation and mechanical ventilation for airway protection, given her reduced level of consciousness. The patient's condition deteriorated, and MRI on day 6 demonstrated worsening brain stem swelling with symmetrical hemorrhagic lesions in the brain stem, amygdalae, putamina, and thalamic nuclei. Appearances were consistent with hemorrhagic ANE with early brain stem involvement. The patient showed no response to steroid therapy and died on the eighth day of admission. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 may be associated with an acute severe encephalopathy and, in this case, was considered most likely to represent an immune-mediated phenomenon. As the pandemic continues, we anticipate that the spectrum of neurologic presentation will broaden. It will be important to delineate the full clinical range of emergent COVID-19-related neurologic disease.

Clinical study on minimally invasive liquefaction and drainage of intracerebral hematoma in the treatment of hypertensive putamen hemorrhage.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to compare the curative effect of different treatment methods of hypertensive putamen hemorrhage, in order to determine an ideal method of treatment; and to explore the curative effect of the application of soft channel technology-minimally invasive liquefaction and drainage of intracerebral hematoma in the treatment of hypertensive putamen hemorrhage. METHODS: Patients with hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage, who were treated in our hospital from January 2015 to January 2016, were included into this study. Patients were divided into three groups: minimally invasive drainage group, internal medical treatment group and craniotomy group. In the minimally invasive drainage group, puncture aspiration and drainage were performed according to different hematoma conditions detected in brain CT, the frontal approach was selected for putamen and intracerebral hemorrhage, and drainage was reserved until the hematoma disappeared in CT detection. Drug therapy was dominated in the internal medical treatment group, while surgery under general anesthesia was performed to remove the hematoma in the craniotomy group. RESULTS: Post-treatment neurological function defect scores in minimally invasive drainage group and internal medical group were 16.14 ± 11.27 and 31.43 ± 10.42, respectively; and the difference was remarkably significant (P< 0.01). Post-treatment neurological function defect scores in the minimally invasive drainage group and craniotomy group were 16.14 ± 11.27 and 24.20 ± 12.23, respectively; and the difference was statistically significant (P< 0.05). There was a remarkable significant difference in ADL1-2 level during followed-up in survival patients between the minimally invasive drainage group and internal medical treatment group (P< 0.01), and there was a significant difference in followed-up mortality between these two groups (P< 0.01). CONCLUSION: Clinical observation and following-up results revealed that minimally invasive drainage treatment was superior to internal medical treatment and craniotomy.

Endocarditis infecciosa por Staphylococcus aureus meticilino sensible en pediatría. Presentación de un caso y revisión de la literatura / Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus infective endocarditis in pediatrics. A case report and literature review

Resumen: La endocarditis infecciosa es una enfermedad poco frecuente en pediatría pero con importante morbimortalidad. Si bien existen grupos de riesgo bien definidos puede presentarse en niños sin cardiopatía subyacente e inmunocompetentes, en quienes la etiología estafilocócica es la más frecuente y el diagnóstico continúa siendo un desafío. Presentamos el caso de un niño de 2 años, previamente sano, con una endocarditis a Staphylococcus aureus meticilino sensible de presentación no usual.

Summary: Infective endocarditis is rather an unusual condition in pediatrics, although it is associated with significant morbility and mortality. In spite of there being well defined risk groups the disease may present in children with no underlying heart disease who are immunocompetent, Staphylococcus aureus being the most frequent etiology. In those cases, diagnosis still constitutes a challenge. The study presents the case of a 2 year-old patient, with a healthy history, who presented methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus infective endocarditis, with rather an unusual presentation.

Increased Perioperative Crystalloid Transfusion Is Associated with Better Outcomes After Spontaneous Hypertensive Putamen Hemorrhage: A Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND: The appropriate amount of transfused fluids, and which types of fluids should be transfused during the peri-operative period, is a matter of controversy among neurosurgeons. Thus, a retrospective study was conducted to assess whether crystalloid transfusion is associated with better outcomes after spontaneous hypertensive putamen hemorrhage (HPH). METHODS: Data from acute spontaneous HPH surgeries performed between December 2013 and June 2016 were collected in a multi-center chart. The primary outcome was prognosis, with better outcome defined as a Glasgow outcome score (GOS) of 4 or greater. The secondary outcome was survival, with survival defined as a GOS score of 2 or greater. Univariate analysis and bivariate logistic regression were performed to account for the association between perioperative HPH and different outcomes. We also used Spearman rank correlation and linear regression to determine the correlation between length of stay (LOS) and the univariate analysis significant factors in patients with a GOS score of 4 or greater. RESULTS: Bivariate logistic regression showed a marked correlation between better outcome and age (odds ratio [OR], 0.927; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.851-0.995), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS; OR, 1.162; 95% CI, 1.049-1.356), and crystalloid transfusion (OR, 1.083; 95% CI, 1.005-1.142). In addition, bivariate logistic regression also revealed a significant correlation between survival and GCS score (OR, 1.097; 95% CI, 1.056-1.199). In patients with a GOS of 4 or greater, Spearman rank correlation and linear regression suggested that a higher GCS score was more likely to prolong the LOS. CONCLUSION: Increased perioperative crystalloid transfusion was independently associated with better outcome across a spectrum of surgical risk profiles after spontaneous HPH.

Imaging findings after methanol intoxication (cohort of 46 patients).

OBJECTIVES: Our goal is to demonstrate the variability of imaging findings, primarily in the MRI, in 46 patients who survived acute methanol poisoning. This cohort of patients is the largest such sample group examined by MRI. METHODS: Patients were examined by means of imaging methods (42 patients by MRI and 4 by CT). All had an identical protocol of MR examination (T2WI, FLAIR, T1WI with or without application of contrast medium and T2WI/FFE, DWI in the transversal plane of the scan, and with focus on the optic nerves in the coronal plane of the scan in T2WI-SPIR). RESULTS: Imaging methods revealed a positive finding associated with methanol intoxication in 21 patients (46%). These consisted of symmetrical lesions in the putamen--13 patients (28%), haemorrhage--13 cases (28%), deposits in white matter with localization primarily subcortically--4 cases (9%), lesions in the region of the globus pallidus--7 cases (15%) (in 6 cases without combination with the lesions in the putamen), lesions in the brainstem afflicted 6 patients (13%), and lesion in the cerebellum was found in one case. A pathological finding was found only in the patients examined by MRI. CONCLUSION: Almost half of the patients who survived acute methanol poisoning had pathological findings by MRI. The most common finding concerned an affliction of the putamen, which is a predilection area. An interesting finding was the relatively frequent occurrence of selective lesion of the globus pallidus, which is more usually associated with other types of intoxication.

Optimal treatment determination on the basis of haematoma volume and intra-cerebral haemorrhage score in patients with hypertensive putaminal haemorrhages: a retrospective analysis of 310 patients.

BACKGROUND: Hypertensive putaminal haemorrhage comprises major part of intra-cerebral haemorrhages, with particularly high morbidity and mortality. However, the optimal treatments for these individuals remain controversial. METHODS: From June 2010 to August 2013, patients with hypertensive putaminal haemorrhages were treated in the Department of Neurosurgery, West China Hospital. Information regarding the age, signs of cerebral herniation, haematoma volume, intra-ventricular haemorrhage, intra-cerebral haemorrhage score and the treatments of each patient were analyzed retrospectively. The outcome was evaluated by the 30-day mortality rate. RESULTS: The 30-day mortality rate of the patients with haematomas volume greater than or equal to 30 ml and intra-cerebral haemorrhage scores of 1 or 2 was decreased in the surgical group compared with those in the conservative group (1.92% VS. 21.40%, OR = 0.072, p = 0.028; 15.40% VS. 33.3%, OR = 0.365, p = 0.248, respectively). The mortality rate of the patients with signs of cerebral herniation was not significantly different between the surgical and conservative groups (83.30% VS. 100%; p = 0.529). The intra-cerebral haemorrhage score was significantly associated with the 30-day mortality rate of patients with intra-cerebral haemorrhages (r = -0.798, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Patients with basal ganglia haematomas volume greater than or equal to 30 ml and intra-cerebral haemorrhage scores of 1 or 2 could benefit from the surgical removal of haematomas. The intra-cerebral haemorrhage score can accurately predict the 30-day mortality rate of patients with hypertensive putaminal haemorrhages.

Controversy in the management of lenticulostriate artery dissecting aneurysm: a case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Intracranial arterial dissection is an uncommon but well-recognized entity. Treatment remains variable, ranging from observation to intervention via the use of either surgical or endovascular techniques. Aneurysms along the lenticulostriate artery have been reported in only 41 patients. With the current case study we illustrate the effectiveness of observation in the context of a dissecting lenticulostriate aneurysm and discuss other approaches that have been used in the treatment of this particular entity. CLINICAL SUMMARY: An accomplished mountain climber presented, after coitus, with acute headache, mild facial weakness, and forgetfulness. Vascular imaging studies revealed a right putaminal hemorrhage secondary to a 3-mm lenticulostriate artery dissecting aneurysm. Clinically, the patient did well, with marked improvement in presenting symptoms enabling his return to mountain climbing. Follow-up angiography showed spontaneous resolution of the arterial dissecting aneurysm. Among the 41 reported cases, 19 were idiopathic, 5 associated with hypertension, and 17 related to various conditions such as Moyamoya disease, arteriovenous malformation, systemic vasculitis, intraventricular tumor, or substance abuse. Of the 42 cases, including the present case, 28 were surgically or endovascularly managed and 12 observed. Only one of the reported cases, a 33-year-old man with Moyamoya disease, who was managed conservatively, died of rebleeding. CONCLUSION: There is no common consensus in the literature on a single treatment strategy for a lenticulostriate artery aneurysm. The present case illustrates that observation and follow-up vascular imaging can be an important treatment strategy, allowing healing of the vessel wall and disappearance of the dissecting aneurysm.

Methanol poisoning: characteristic MRI findings.

Acute methanol intoxication is not an unusual poisoning. It can have serious neurological sequelae. We emphasize how neuroimaging can help in distinguishing methanol poisoning from other causes of acute unconsciousness in alcoholic patients such as hypoglycemic brain damage and carbon monoxide poisoning or head injury, which are frequently observed in alcoholic patients and are also responsible for altered sensorium. The most important findings in MR brain imaging in methanol poisoning have been bilateral putaminal hemorrhagic necrosis. Other less common findings are subcortical and deep white matter lesions, cerebral and cerebellar cortical lesions, and midbrain lesions, cerebral and intraventricular hemorrhage, and even enhancement of necrotic lesions, we found almost the entire spectrum of MRI findings in this patient with methanol poisoning. Neurological sequelae can entail the course and prognosis in methanol poisoning. The patient died because of ventilator-associated pneumonia that developed in the course of prolonged hospitalization.

Alcohol is a risk factor not for thalamic but for putaminal hemorrhage: the Akita Stroke Registry.

BACKGROUND: Although the risk factors of cerebral hemorrhage were established long ago, there is little agreement as to the risk factors for the site of cerebral hemorrhage. METHODS: We obtained mass health screening data collected between 1990 and 2000 regarding 151,796 subjects from the Akita Prefectural Federation of Agricultural Cooperative for Health and Welfare. A first-ever cerebral hemorrhage occurring <3 years after the screening examination was defined as an event. Stroke events were determined from the Akita stroke registry between 1990 and 2003. Clinical risk factors for stroke, such as age, blood pressure, severe obesity (body mass index >30 kg/m(2)), low serum total cholesterol, hepatic disorder, renal disorder, and drinking habits were then assessed. RESULTS: Cerebral hemorrhage developed in 344 cases in the study population. The distribution of subtypes (putaminal hemorrhage [PH], thalamic hemorrhage [TH], and subcortical hemorrhage [SH]) were 122 cases (35.5%), 110 cases (32.0%), and 44 cases (12.8%), respectively. We evaluated the risk factors by multiple logistic regression analysis among these 3 groups. Age was a significant risk factor among these 3 groups, but blood pressure was not a risk factor in SH. Low serum cholesterol and drinking habits were significant risk factors only in PH. Hepatic disorder was a strong risk factor in PH and a weak risk factor in TH. Interestingly, a drinking habit was a significant risk factor only in PH. CONCLUSIONS: Drinking habits had been a risk factor for cerebral hemorrhage, but it was a risk factor not for PH and not for TH or SH.

Intracranial hemorrhage from undiagnosed metastatic brain tumor during general anesthesia.

A patient with endometrial cancer presented with intracranial hemorrhage from an undiagnosed metastatic brain tumor during abdominal radical hysterectomy. Since she was neurologically intact, a systematic examination for brain metastasis had not been performed preoperatively. After the surgery, she had delayed recovery from general anesthesia with right hemiplegia and aphasia. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed left putaminal hemorrhage from brain metastasis.

[Case of ruptured middle cerebral artery bifurcation aneurysm presenting as putaminal hemorrhage without subarachnoid hemorrhage].

Ruptured aneurysms typically present as subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH); however, they can also cause intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) that can be mistaken for hypertensive hemorrhage. We report a rare case of a ruptured middle cerebral artery bifurcation aneurysm presenting as putaminal hemorrhage without subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). A 47-year-old man, with a past history of hypertension, presented with a decreased level of consciousness. Neurological examination revealed hemiparesis of the right side. A CT scan on admission demonstrated left putaminal hemorrhage without SAH. Three-dimensional CT and conventional angiograms demonstrated a superiorly directing aneurysm of the M1/M2 portion of the left middle cerebral artery (MCA). We performed aneurysmal clipping and hematoma evacuation. The postoperative course was uneventful. This case suggested that ruptured aneurysms situated on the middle cerebral artery can present as putaminal hemorrhage without SAH.

Angiographic examination of spontaneous putaminal hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND: This study was carried out to examine indications for angiographic evaluation in the case of spontaneous putaminal hemorrhage. METHODS: Angiographic examinations were performed on 62 consecutive adults with spontaneous putaminal hemorrhage without remarkable subarachnoid hemorrhage. Most patients were evaluated using conventional catheter angiography except for hypertensive patients over the age of 60 who underwent a magnetic resonance angiogram or a computed tomography angiogram. Computed tomography and clinical factors such as age and hypertension were correlated with the angiographic findings. RESULTS: Nine of the 62 patients (15%) exhibited angiographic abnormalities, including middle cerebral artery aneurysm (n = 1), arteriovenous malformations (n = 3), moyamoya disease (n = 2), and the moyamoya phenomenon associated with a proximal middle cerebral artery occlusion (n = 3). The angiographic yield was significantly higher (1) among patients at or below the median age of 55 compared with those above (9/33, 27%, versus 0/29, 0%; p < 0.01), and (2) among patients without hypertension compared with those with hypertension (5/9, 56%, versus 4/53, 8%; p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Although our data could be biased due to the patient selection procedure, they suggest that angiographic evaluation is highly useful for spontaneous putaminal hemorrhage regardless of volume and shape of the hematomas, excepting hypertensive patients over 55 years of age.

Haemorrhagic presentation of low-grade glioma in adults.

Intracranial bleeding is rare in patients with low-grade gliomas, above all in adult population. We reviewed the literature of such cases and reported another case of a haemorrhagic low-grade glioma in a 54-year-old woman presenting with a left hemiparesis. Computer tomography (CT) images showed a right basal ganglia haemorrhage with no mass effect. Vascular malformations were ruled out by angiography. Eighteen fluoro-fluoro deossiglucosio (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET/CT) showed a large hypometabolic area corresponding to the lesion. We waited for patient's improvement. Late magnetic resonance images revealed a low-grade glioma at the bleeding site. Tumour was removed and histopathologic examination revealed a WHO grade II mixed glioma. The authors emphasize that this evidence has to be kept in mind since it has important therapeutic implications.

[A case of postpartum cerebral angiopathy with intracranial hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage immediately after delivery].

A 32-year-old woman, gravida 0, para 0, was admitted for delivery at 40 weeks of gestation. She had no history of headache, hypertension, and toxemia. She was delivered of a healthy boy. Although she was given no medication during normal delivery, she suddenly became drowsy and developed left hemiparesis immediately after delivery. Computed tomographic (CT) scan of the brain performed on the admission day revealed a subarachnoid hemorrhage and right putaminal hemorrhage. A 4-vessel cerebral angiogram demonstrated multiple irregular narrowing of the anterior cerebral arteries, middle cerebral arteries, and posterior cerebral arteries. Her conditions seemed to improve without any medication, and the multiple stenoses were no longer observed by angiography in a follow-up examination. On the basis of these observations, she was diagnosed as having postpartum cerebral angiopathy (PCA). Pathogenesis of PCA still remaing unclear to date an ergot alkaloid derivate (ergonovine) and the hydrogenated form of the powerful vasoconstrictor ergot (bromocriptine) have been reported as cause of PCA. We will classify PCA into 3 categories: eclampsia, secondary PCA, and primary PCA. "Primary PCA" is of unknown etiology, "secondary PCA" results from a known etiology such as drugs, and "eclampsia" is a PCA with toxemia of pregnancy. We report here, that PCA may occur even in a normal pregnant woman who was given no medication, and should be considered in the diagnosis of postpartum cerebral vascular diseases in women.

[Putaminal hemorrhage in a case of Turner's syndrome with hyperaldosteronemia].

A case of Turner's syndrome complicated with intracerebral hemorrhage in a 21-year-old female is presented. The patient experienced acute onset of unconsciousness and the left-sided hemiparesis due to the right-sided putaminal hemorrhage. Severe hypertension was seen at the hospitalization. Cerebral angiography revealed no vascular lesion other than the displacement of lenticulostriate arteries. Emergent surgical evacuation of the hematoma was successfully performed with her favorable outcome. Postoperatively, several hormonal tests indicated hyperaldosteronemia secondary to the increased levels of ACTH and renin as a result of hyper-response to the environmental stress, leading to critical hypertension. Other examinations including CT scan, MRI, MRA, and laboratory data showed no abnormalities suggestive of renal lesions. It is supposed that hypertension, as a frequent presenting feature, should be strictly controlled in Turner's syndrome from the first time of diagnosis.

Bilateral putaminal hemorrhage with cerebral edema in hyperglycemic hyperosmolar syndrome.

Bilateral putaminal hemorrhages rarely occur simultaneously in hypertensive patients. The association of intracerebral hemorrhage with cerebral edema (CE) has been rarely reported in diabetic patients. We present a patient with bilateral putaminal hemorrhage (BPH) and CE during the course of hyperglycemic hyperosmolar syndrome (HHS). A 40-year-old man with a history of diabetes mellitus and chronic alcoholism was admitted with acute impaired mentality. His blood pressure was within the normal range on admission. Laboratory results revealed hyperglycemia and severe metabolic acidosis without ketonuria. After aggressive treatment, plasma sugar fell to 217 mg/dl, but brain CT showed BPH and diffuse CE. Our case demonstrated that HHS should be considered as a cause of BPH with CE. Initial brain imaging study may be recommended for patients with diabetic coma.

Bilateral Putaminal Hemorrhage with Cerebral Edema in Hyperglycemic Hyperosmolar Syndrome

Bilateral putaminal hemorrhages rarely occur simultaneously in hypertensive patients. The association of intracerebral hemorrhage with cerebral edema (CE) has been rarely reported in diabetic patients. We present a patient with bilateral putaminal hemorrhage (BPH) and CE during the course of hyperglycemic hyperosmolar syndrome (HHS). A 40-year-old man with a history of diabetes mellitus and chronic alcoholism was admitted with acute impaired mentality. His blood pressure was within the normal range on admission. Laboratory results revealed hyperglycemia and severe metabolic acidosis without ketonuria. After aggressive treatment, plasma sugar fell to 217 mg/dl, but brain CT showed BPH and diffuse CE. Our case demonstrated that HHS should be considered as a cause of BPH with CE. Initial brain imaging study may be recommended for patients with diabetic coma.