[Treatment of severe cervicofacial hemangioma with interferon alpha-2b]. / Traitement d'un hémangiome cervicofacial grave par interféron alpha-2b.

BACKGROUND: Indications for active treatment of hemangiomas are those lesions which, by virtue of their size and site, compromise vital structures. The treatment of choice is oral or intravenous corticosteroids, but interferon alpha may represent alternative therapy. CASE REPORT: A 15-day-old girl was admitted for congenital hypothyroidism. She had a large cervicofacial hemangioma extending to periorbital and laryngeal areas. The patient was given systemic prednisone (2 mg/kg/day) and L-thyroxin without success. An episode of acute respiratory distress a few weeks later required tracheostomy while prednisone dosage was increased to 4 mg/kg/day. This drug was not tolerated and the hemangioma was treated by particle embolization that was followed by a partial decrease in the volume of the hemangioma. A second episode of cardiorespiratory distress at 7 1/2 months of age required interferon alpha, 3 million units/m2/day, that was progressively effective. After 11 months of treatment, the hemangioma disappeared, without relapse 6 months later. CONCLUSION: Interferon alpha is an interesting alternative therapy of infantile hemangiomas when they are resistant to steroid treatment.

[Paraneoplastic Cushing's syndrome. Pseudotumors of the thymus occurring after correction of hypercorticism. 3 cases]. / Syndrome de Cushing paranéoplasique. Pseudo-tumeurs thymiques survenant après correction de l'hypercorticisme. 3 observations.

Ectopic ACTH-secreting tumours responsible for paraneoplastic Cushing's syndrome are invisible at radiography in about 50 percent of the cases. In this situation, the current attitude is to correct the hypercorticism and then embark on a regular morphological monitoring in search of the initial tumour with the purpose of removing it. We report the cases of 3 patients who had a paraneoplastic Cushing's syndrome of unknown origin in 1 case and consecutive, in 2 cases, to a bronchial carcinoid tumour initially occult and discovered 30 and 42 months respectively after the onset of the disease. Six to 10 months after hypercorticism was cured with ketoconazole and bilateral adrenalectomy, a thymic mass 2 to 5 cm in length was detected by computerized tomography or magnetic resonance imaging in all 3 patients. At resection of the thymus, performed in 2 cases, a benign hyperplasia of this organ with negative immunohistostaining for ACTH was discovered. This abnormality, seldom reported, seems to result from the abrupt cessation of hypercorticism. It must be known to avoid an unnecessary thymectomy during supervision of patients with paraneoplastic Cushing's syndrome related to a radiologically occult tumour.

Usefulness of the corticotropin-releasing hormone test during bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling for the diagnosis of Cushing's disease.

Inferior petrosal sinus blood sampling for ACTH measurement (IPSS) is used for the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome and for the preoperative location of pituitary microadenomas. Intermittent ACTH secretion from pituitary adenomas may result in insignificant differences between petrosal and peripheral ACTH levels at the time of sampling. Thus, pituitary stimulation during IPSS may improve the procedure. The aim of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of CRH injection in combination with IPSS. Twenty-two patients with Cushing's disease (CD; 5 macroadenomas, 16 microadenomas, and 1 corticotroph hyperplasia) and 5 patients with ectopic ACTH syndrome were studied. Bilateral IPSS was successfully carried out on 25 patients. Patients with ectopic ACTH syndrome had, before and after CRH injection, central to peripheral ACTH gradients below 1.7. Four patients with CD had basal gradients below 1.4. After CRH administration all patients with CD had gradients above 3.2. Despite correct location of central catheters, the predicted location of pituitary microadenomas was erroneous in 41% of the cases. It was not improved after CRH injection. In conclusion, the combination of CRH injection with IPSS was useful for the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome, as it increased the discrimination of the procedure. On the contrary, it was useless for the preoperative location of pituitary microadenomas, which was poorly predicted by IPSS.

Study of correlation between intradiscal pressure and magnetic resonance imaging data in evaluation of disc degeneration. Therapeutic issue with percutaneous nucleotomy.

Intradiscal pressure and volume measurements using discomanometry were correlated to features of degeneration noted with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in 36 discs in patients scheduled for percutaneous nucleotomy. Discomanometric data (intradiscal pressure and degree of pressure loss at 0 and 60 seconds after intradiscal infusion, area under the pressure curve, and discal volume) were not correlated with the MR data (degree of disc height loss and degree of signal intensity loss on T2-weighted images). Results of nucleotomy were strongly correlated with discomanometric data but not with the studied MR factors. Discomanometry by evaluating the physical status of discs, may predict results of percutaneous nucleotomy and consequently play a major role in patients selection.

[Diagnostic contribution of the new imaging systems in arterial and nerve disorders of the posterior fossa]. / Apport diagnostique de la nouvelle imagerie dans les conflits artères-nerfs de la fosse postérieure.

Giant aneurysms of the vertebrobasilar system are rare, representing only 5% of intracranial aneurysms and are the cause of severe pseudo-tumoral of hemorrhagic syndromes. Their endovascular or surgical treatment is always very dangerous. The basilar megadolicho-artery, of congenital origin, is frequently expressed by a hemispasm or facial neuralgias. The diagnosis is made easily by TDM and angiography. Abstaining from therapy is the rule. The much debated vascular rings are often held responsible for the microvascular compression syndrome, leading to facial neuralgias, hemispasm, Ménièrie-form or pseudo-tumoral cochleo-vestibular syndrome, neuralgia of the IXth or spasmodic torticollis. The radiological diagnosis is very difficult and mainly depends on MRI. However, quite often, only surgical exploration enables the diagnosis and treatment of the neurovascular compressive syndrome.

[Protocol for preparation, anesthesia and monitoring in therapeutic angiography]. / Protocole de préparation, d'anesthésie et de surveillance en angiographie thérapeutique.

The procedures involved in cerebral and medullary embolization produce special problems for the anesthesiologist. Some imperatives must be followed in order to minimize the high neuroradiological risks associated with these long and repetitive procedures. The first of these imperatives is sedation, which throughout the procedure should be sufficient, although not narcotic enough to prevent neurological evaluations. The use of a benzodiazepine (Midazolam) in conjunction with an analgesic (Alfentanil) that is rapidly eliminated answers this need. The prescription of vasodilatator agents depends on the location of the embolization. Calcium channel blockers should be used following embolism of the internal carotid while nitrate derivatives are recommended after embolism of the external carotid. Reduction of the risk of thrombosis is accomplished by perfusion with anti-sludge or, with exception to therapeutic procedures involving hemostasis, by perfusion with acetylsalicylic acid. Following evaluation of 105 procedures in 75 patients it is concluded that this sedation produces reliable results and allows the procedure to be performed with maximal security.

MR imaging of foraminal and extraforaminal lumbar disk herniations.

Foraminal and extraforaminal disk herniations are less frequent than intraspinal herniations at the lumbar level and more difficult to diagnose. They are undetected by myelography and distinction between them and an enlarged nerve root may be difficult with CT. Thirty-three patients presenting with persistent radiculopathy and showing an image suggesting a far lateral disk herniation on CT at 34 disk levels were prospectively imaged with magnetic resonance (MR). In all cases the disk fragment was identified and its separation from the nerve root was possible. This separation was more readily visible on sagittal or angled coronal views. The exact location of the herniation in relation to the facet joints and the pedicles was best assessed with MR: Ten were purely intraforaminal, 8 extraforaminal, and 15 both. Cephalad migration was noted on the sagittal lateral facet plane in 71% of cases. Surgical correlations were available for 25 disks. Three were falsely positive for disk herniation. Enlarged foraminal veins were responsible for this appearance as confirmed by surgery in two of these. When a prediction of disruption of the lateral extension of the posterior longitudinal ligament was made, it was confirmed at surgery in 52% of cases because of extreme lateralization of the herniations.

Osteoid osteoma of the cervical spine. Misleading MR features about a case involving the uncinate process.

The authors studied the usefulness of MR imaging in the diagnosis of an osteoid osteoma occurring within the C4 left uncinate process. It was detected by scintigraphy and diagnosed by CT. On T2-weighted MR images the nidus showed a very low signal intensity with an increased signal within the adjacent end-plates. This pattern was misleading and more suggestive of degenerative disk disease.

Normal and disrupted lumbar longitudinal ligaments: correlative MR and anatomic study.

The posterior and anterior longitudinal ligaments of the lumbar spine appear on magnetic resonance (MR) images as thin lines of very low signal intensity in all spin-echo sequences. They cover the periphery of the outer fibers of the anulus fibrosus on sagittal images. The lumbar spine of 17 patients with 19 disk herniations was prospectively evaluated with MR imaging, and these findings were correlated with surgical findings. At surgery the posterior ligament was found to be disrupted in eight cases and intact in 11. Absence of a low-signal peripheral line around the herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) was the most reliable sign of ligament rupture (no false-negative or false-positive findings). The peripheral line appeared to be interrupted in four cases, two of which were falsely positive. The two false-positive cases were related to a chemical shift artifact between epidural fat and the HNP. Presence of a normal and continuous peripheral line outlining the HNP excluded ligament disruption. The overall sensitivity for detecting disruption was 100%, and the specificity was 78%.

[Diagnosis of intracranial diseases]. / Diagnostic des affections intracrâniennes.

Computed tomography (CT) is the fundamental examination in the diagnosis and assessment of intracranial lesions. After it, other exploratory techniques, such as cervical doppler-ultrasonography, digital angiography by the arterial route, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and straight X-ray films of the skull may be considered. The choice between these different techniques depends on the neurological pathology being investigated.

Radioclinical problems raised by megalodolichobasilar artery. 17 cases and a review of the literature.

Megalodolichobasilar artery (MDBA) is a vascular abnormality characterized by a regular increase in caliber and lengthening of the vertebrobasilar system (VBS), with varying degrees of displacement. Several physiopathological theories have been put forward. Clinically, MDBA may compress the cranial nerves and may be responsible for ischaemic accidents of the brain stem, hydrocephalus or mass syndrome. The radiological images may be misleading. The diagnosis of MDBA should be considered on the basis of CT findings, and its should be confirmed by vertebral arteriography at the slightest doubt.

CT-diskography in the evaluation of the postoperative lumbar spine. Preliminary results.

Thirty-three patients with recurrent sciatica after lumbar-disk surgery were studied for recurrent herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) by CT alone and CT-diskography (CTD). Twenty-six patients underwent surgical reexploration allowing correlation with CTD. CTD made a correct diagnosis of recurrent HNP in twenty-one patients showing an extravasation of the contrast medium from the disk space into the medullary canal. In two cases CTD was positive for recurrent HNP but surgery showed only fibrosis. The amount of contrast leak was very small in these two cases along the posterior common longitudinal ligament, and the junction with the disk was very narrow. Because of their clinical presentation three patients with negative studies were operated upon. One showed only fibrosis and the two others showed an associated disk fragment. Among the twenty-one true-positive cases, seven showed a combination of recurrent HNP and scarring. Contamination of CSF by the contrast medium through the dura was observed in two patients. Although a prospective comparative study between CTD and IV-contrast-enhanced CT is necessary, CTD appears to be a useful diagnostic procedure for recurrent HNP after surgery of the lumbar spine.