Bone Flap Conservation in the Scalp After Decompressive Craniectomy.

BACKGROUND: Decompressive craniectomy may be used as a primary or secondary treatment for intracranial hypertension and is clearly associated with reduced mortality. The removed bone flap is usually preserved in the abdominal subcutaneous tissue or in the bone bank. The aim of this study was to describe an option for preserving the bone flap after decompressive craniectomy using bone flap preservation in the skull subcutaneous tissue in subgaleal space over the pericranium contralateral to the craniectomy site. METHODS: This was a multicenter retrospective study including patients with severe traumatic brain injury from 2014 to 2016. There were 23 patients who had their bone fragments preserved below the scalp in the subcutaneous tissue for analysis. The following results were analyzed: surgical site infection, bone flap resorption during the period of preservation, and patient discomfort. RESULTS: Five patients died of systemic infectious complications, and the remaining patients underwent cranioplasty a mean 118 days after craniectomy. There were no surgical wound infections, macroscopically evident bone absorption, or site discomfort in any of the patients during a period of 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: This variant of the bone flap preservation technique has been shown to be satisfactory as an option for routine use.

Cefaleia Trigêmino-autonômica e Neuromielite Óptica / Trigemino-autonomic Headache and Neuromyelitis Optica

As cefaleias trigêmino-autonômicas compartilham os aspectos clínicos da cefaleia, além de proeminentes sintomas disautonômicos crânio faciais. A Neuromielite Óptica (NMO) ou Doença de Devic é uma doença inflamatória grave, desmielinizante e auto-imune do sistema nervoso central que acomete, preferencialmente, os nervos ópticos e a medula espinhal, causando neurite óptica aguda, uni ou bilateral, e mielite transversa. O objetivo desse trabalho é relatar um caso clínico de NMO, cuja manifestação inicial é atípica. Uma revisão de literatura com as palavras-chaves Neuromielite Óptica e Cefaleia Trigêminoautonômica foi realizada no PubMed e foram selecionados os artigos e relatos de casos mais relevantes sobre o assunto. Conclui-se que estas duas doenças podem ter em comum uma alteração hipotalâmica e uma doença desmielinizante grave pode se iniciar com uma cefaleia trigêmino-autonômica. (AU)

The Trigeminal-autonomic headaches share the clinical features of headache, as well as prominent facial skull disautonomic symptoms. The Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) or Devic's disease is a severe inflammatory disease, demyelinating and autoimmune of the central nervous system that affects mainly the optic nerves and spinal cord, causing acute optic neuritis, unilateral or bilateral, and transverse myelitis. The objective of this study is to report a case of NMO, whose initial manifestation is atypical. A literature review with keywords Neuromyelitis Optica and Trigeminal-autonomic Headache has conducted in PubMed and we have selected the most relevant articles and case reports on the subject. In conclusion, these two diseases may have a common hypothalamic disturbance and a severe demyelinating disease can start with a trigeminal-autonomic headache. (AU)