Methodology for creating and validating object naming and semantic tests used by Verst-Maldaun Language Assessment during awake craniotomies.

Verst-Maldaun Language Assessment (VMLA) is a new intraoperative neuropsychological test (NT) within our local culture, e.g., native Portuguese speaking Brazilians. It aims to fill the specific need of an objective and dynamic approach for assessing the language network during awake craniotomies. The test includes object naming (ON) and semantic functions. This paper describes the process of validation, allowing for other centers to create their own language assessment. The validation process included 248 volunteers and the results were associated with age, gender and educational level (EL). The factor with the greatest impact was EL, followed by age. Intraoperative image learning by repetition is unlikely, since it is composed of 388 items and 70 combinations. The test will be available for free use under http://www.vemotests.com/ (beginning in February 2021).

"Next Door" intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging for awake craniotomy: Preliminary experience and technical note.

BACKGROUND: During glioma surgery "maximal safe resection" must be the main goal. Intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) associated with awake craniotomy (AC) is a valuable tool to achieve this objective. In this article, AC with a "next-door" iMRI concept is described in a stepwise protocol. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of 18 patients submitted to AC using iMRI; a stepwise protocol is also discussed. RESULTS: The mean age was 41.7 years. Hemiparesis, aphasia, and seizures were the main initial symptoms of the patients. Sixty-six percent of the tumors were located in the left hemisphere. All tumors were near or within eloquent areas. Fifty-three percent of the cases were glioblastomas multiforme and 47% of the patients had low grade gliomas. The mean surgical time and iMRI time were 4 h 4 min and 30 min, respectively. New resection was performed in 33% after iMRI. Extent of resection (EOR) higher than 95% was possible in 66.7% of the patients. The main reason of EOR lower than 95% was positive mapping of eloquent areas (6 patients). Eighty percent of the patients experienced improvement of their deficits immediately after the surgery or had a stable clinical status whereas 20% had neurological deterioration, however, all of them improved after 30 days. CONCLUSION: AC associated with "next-door" iMRI is a complex procedure, but if performed using a meticulous technique, it may improve the overall tumor resection and safety of the patients.

Effectiveness of C5 or C6-Cz assembly in predicting immediate post operative facial nerve deficit.

BACKGROUND: Intraoperative neurophysiology monitoring (IOM) is a valuable tool in cerebellopontine angle (CPA) surgeries posing risk to the cranial nerves. Transcranial electrical stimulation (TES) for cranial nerves has been performed in the last 7 years, for obtaining the facial nerve motor evoked potential (MEP), using either C3/C4-Cz or C3-C4 (or inverse) stimulating points, which have been correlated with facial nerve functional outcome. METHOD: Intraoperative surgical and electrophysiological findings were documented prospectively. Patient files were reviewed for clinical data. We studied 23 patients undergoing CPA tumor resection using C5 or C6-Cz montage for TES, and were able to determine the correlation between facial nerve functional outcome and the amplitude drop of facial MEP above 50 %. Patients were evaluated for immediate facial nerve outcome and 6 months after the surgery. Follow-up was performed by structured telephone interviews with local physicians. RESULTS: The sensibility of the studied parameters was 92.8 % for amplitude drop of facial nerve MEP, with positive predictive value of 81.2 %. The absence of changes during IOM has shown a negative predictive value of 100 %. CONCLUSION: In this series, the used montage was effective in predicting new facial deficit.

Comparison between the C5 or C6-Cz electrode assembly and C3 or C4-Cz assembly for transcranial electric motor activation of muscular response of the contralateral facial nerve.

OBJECTIVE: We used an assembly of electrodes C3 and C4-Cz in order to activate the motor cortical area of the corticobulbar tract to elucidate the motor-evoked potential of the contralateral mentalis muscle. METHOD: We compared this setup to that of an assembly with electrodes C5 or C6-Cz using a train of electrical pulses and a single electrical pulse. This analysis was made in 23 consecutive patients who underwent several varied surgeries and were prospectively operated on at Santa Paula Hospital between January and June 2011. RESULTS: The results showed that the assembly with C5 or C6-Cz produced a multisynaptic motor-evoked potential in the contralateral mentalis muscle in 86.9 % of the patients, whereas 82.6 % of patients stimulated at points C3 or C4-Cz presented the same response. However, both assemblies showed similar behavior with the use of a single electrical pulse for peripheral contralateral nerve stimulation. CONCLUSION: We concluded that the C5 or C6-Cz assembly was similar to C3 or C4-Cz in obtaining a multisynaptic response in the contralateral mentalis muscle, although it required less intensive stimulation than the C3 or C4- Cz assembly.

Monitoração neurofisiológica intraoperatória em tumores de ângulo pontocerebelar: papel de parâmetros distintos na predição do resultado funcional do nervo facial / Intraoperative neurophysiology monitoring for cerebellopontine angle tumors: role of distinctive parameters in predicting the facial nerve functional outcome

Nas cirurgias de ressecção de tumores do ângulo pontocerebelar, a preservação do nervo facial está entre os seus principais objetivos. Diversas técnicas neurofisiológicas vêm sendo empregadas com o objetivo de predizer déficit imediato do nervo facial no pós-operatório, como a eletromiografia contínua para registro de atividade neurotônica tipo A, a estimulação direta do nervo facial no sítio tumoral e a estimulação elétrica transcraniana com captação em músculos de face. Analisamos 23 pacientes de forma prospectiva, submetidos à cranectomia retrossigmoide para ressecção de tumores em fossa posterior no período de janeiro de 2008 a março de 2010. Os pacientes foram avaliados clinicamente de acordo com a gradação de House-Brackmann para a função do nervo facial. Foram observadas a ocorrência de atividade neurotônica do tipo A, também chamada de atividade irritativa, a queda da amplitude do potencial motor do nervo facial obtido com a estimulação elétrica transcraniana e o aumento na intensidade do estímulo elétrico da estimulação elétrica transcraniana para a obtenção desse potencial. Esses dados foram relacionados à condição clínica do nervo facial no pós-operatório imediato e na última data de acompanhamento. Observamos que a queda da amplitude do nervo facial acima de 60% do seu valor inicial basal foi a variável mais sensível (89%) e com maior valor preditivo positivo (92%) para a piora clínica do nervo facial. A ocorrência de atividade irritativa isolada foi a variável menos sensível (7%) e com valor preditivo positivo de apenas 25%. O aumento na intensidade da estimulação elétrica transcraniana não mostrou significância estatística (p = 0,287). Concluímos que das variáveis estudadas, a queda na amplitude do potencial evocado motor do 7º nervo craniano acima de 60% foi a melhor na predição de piora clínica imediata do nervo facial.

The preservation of facial nerve function is one of the most important goals of the cerebellopontine angle tumor resection surgeries. Valuable neurophysiologic techniques have been used to predict the facial nerve outcome, such as continuous electromyography to identify neurotonic activity type A, direct facial nerve stimulation in the vicinity of the tumor and transcranial motor evoked potential recording in face muscles. We analyzed 23 patients undergoing retrossigmoidectomy approaches for posterior fossa tumor resection between January 2008 and March 2010. Their facial nerve function was evaluated using the House-Brackmann score. We correlated the occurrence of type A neurotonic activity, facial nerve motor evoked potential amplitude obtained with transcranial electrical stimulation and increase in the electric stimulus threshold to the immediate and last follow-up facial nerve outcome. In this series, the increase in electric stimulus threshold showed no statistical significance (p = 0,287). The drop of the facial nerve motor evoked potential amplitude equal or above 60% was the most sensitive (89%) and with the highest positive predictive value (92%) in identifying poor facial nerve outcome. The occurrence of neurotonic activity type A showed to be the least sensitive (7%) and with the poorest positive predictive value (25%) of them. We conclude that among the used parameters, the drop of the final 7º nerve motor evoked potential amplitude equal or above 60% of basal recording was the best one in predicting poor facial nerve outcome.