Hemodynamic predictors of early neurological deterioration and clinical outcome after endovascular treatment in large artery occlusion.

Objective: Half of the patients with acute large artery occlusion (LAO) have poor outcomes after endovascular treatment (EVT). Early complications such as cerebral edema and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) can lead to early neurological deterioration (END), which correlates with hemodynamics. This study aimed to identify the hemodynamic predictors of END and outcomes in LAO patients after EVT. Methods: A total of 76 patients with anterior circulation LAO who underwent EVT and received transcranial Doppler (TCD) monitoring were included. Bilateral middle cerebral artery (MCA) blood flow velocities (BFVs) were measured repeatedly within 1 week. Mean flow velocities (MFV) and MFV index (ipsilateral MFV/contralateral MFV) were calculated. The primary outcome was the incidence of END within 72 h. The secondary outcome was the functional outcome at 90 days-a good outcome was defined as a modified Rankin scale (mRS) score of 0-2, while a poor outcome was defined as an mRS score of 3-6. Results: A total of 13 patients (17.1 %) experienced END within 72 h, including 5 (38.5 %) with cerebral edema, 5 (38.5 %) with sICH, and 3 (23.0 %) with infarct progression. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that a higher 24 h MFV index was independently associated with END (aOR 10.5; 95 % CI 2.28-48.30, p = 0.003) and a poor 90-day outcome (aOR 5.10; 95 % CI 1.38-18.78, p = 0.014). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) of the 24 h MFV index for predicting END was 0.807 (95 % CI 0.700-0.915, p = 0.0005), the sensitivity was 84.6 %, and the specificity was 66.7 %. At the 1-week TCD follow-up, patients who had poor 90-day outcomes showed significantly higher 1-week iMFV [73.5 (58.4-99.0) vs. 57.7 (45.3-76.3), p = 0.004] and MFV index [1.24 (0.98-1.57) vs.1.0 (0.87-1.15) p = 0.007]. A persistent high MFV index (PHMI) was independently associated with a poor outcome (aOR 7.77, 95 % CI 1.81-33.3, p = 0.006). Conclusion: TCD monitoring within 24 h after EVT in LAO patients can help predict END, while dynamic follow-up within 1 week is valuable in predicting clinical outcomes.

Intracranial large artery embolism due to carotid thrombosis caused by a neck massager: A case report.

BACKGROUND: There are few reported cases of intracranial large artery embolism due to carotid thrombosis caused by a neck massager. Herein we report such a case. CASE SUMMARY: A 49-year-old woman presented with left limb weakness and dysarthria after a history of neck massage for 1 mo. Neurological examination showed left central facial paralysis and left hemiparesis with a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 12. Brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed restricted diffusion on diffusion-weighted imaging in the right parietal and temporal lobes. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) indicated M3 segment embolism of the right middle cerebral artery. Neck CTA revealed thrombosis of the bilateral common carotid arteries. Carotid ultrasound showed thrombosis in the bilateral common carotid arteries (approximately 2 cm below the proximal end of the carotid sinus), and contrast-enhanced ultrasound did not suggest enhancement. No hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, vasculitis, or thrombophilia was found after admission. After 1 wk of treatment with aspirin 200 mg and atorvastatin 40 mg, a carotid ultrasound reexamination showed that the thrombosis had significantly reduced. CONCLUSION: Neck massager may cause carotid artery thrombosis.

Procalcitonin is a marker of gram-negative bacteremia in patients with sepsis.

BACKGROUND: Prediction of the species of pathogen among patients with sepsis within hours would be helpful in accelerating proper treatment. As a potential method of shortening the time to identification, this study considered the usefulness of measuring procalcitonin (PCT) to predict blood culture (BC) results. METHODS: The authors retrospectively analyzed the data of patients with a diagnosis of sepsis in their hospital from December 2012 to December 2013. The authors analyzed all diagnostic episodes consisting of BC and PCT concentration. The diagnostic performance of PCT to predict gram-negative bacteremia was tested using a receiver operative characteristic curve. Logistic regression was constructed using the presence of gram-negative bacteria as the dependent variable. RESULTS: A total of 262 diagnostic episodes met the inclusion criteria. According to BC classifications, a significantly higher value of PCT was observed in bloodstream infections caused by gram-negative bacteria (26.7 ng/mL, 0.09-188.3) than that in bloodstream infections caused by gram-positive bacteria (0.84 ng/mL, 0.05-18.79) or Candida spp. (1.12 ng/mL, 0.07-49.68). A cutoff value of ≥ 3.39 ng/mL for PCT showed a sensitivity of 80%, a specificity of 71%, a positive predictive value of 35%, a negative predictive value of 91% and an area under the curve of 0.73 for gram-negative bacteremia identification by BC. Among the 122 diagnostic episodes with positive BC results, a cutoff value of ≥ 6.47 ng/mL for PCT yielded a sensitivity of 74%, a specificity of 81%, a positive predictive value of 82%, a negative predictive value of 75% and an area under the curve of 0.81 for gram-negative bacteremia identification. CONCLUSIONS: PCT may represent a useful tool for differentiating gram-positive from gram-negative bloodstream infection with a significantly higher PCT level indicating gram-negative bacteremia.

Diagnosis of concomitant pituitary adenoma and Rathke's cleft cyst with magnetic resonance imaging.

INTRODUCTION: The diagnosis of concomitant pituitary adenoma (PA) and Rathke's cleft cyst (RCC) is difficult because PA and RCC cause similar symptoms. This study aimed to investigate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics and surgical management of sellar lesions for concomitant PA and RCC. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed in 18 patients with concomitant PA and RCC who visited our hospital between June 2008 and May 2014. MRI features, surgical management, histopathological diagnosis and prognosis of concomitant PA and RCC were summarized. RESULTS: Of the 18 patients, 3 cases were diagnosed with concomitant PA and RCC and 2 with concomitant PA and intermedia cyst by preoperative MRI. The remaining 8 cases were misdiagnosed as cystic formation of PA, 3 cases were bleeding of PA, and 2 cases were RCC. Surgery via the trans-sphenoidal route was performed in 17 cases and trans-frontal approach was chosen for one patient. All PAs resected were diagnosed by histological examination and the diagnosis of concomitant PA and RCC was histologically confirmed. CONCLUSION: A non-enhancing cyst-like structure within the pars intermedia of PA usually located in the midline is a prominent MRI feature of coexisted PA and RCC. Total resection of coexisted RCC must be achieved and fat graft should be avoided during surgery because of high recurrence rate of RCC and complicated hypophysitis.