Parietal bone agenesis and athelia in retinoic acid embryopathy: An expansion of the phenotype.

BACKGROUND: Retinoic acid signaling plays a critical role during embryogenesis and requires tight regulation. Exposure to exogenous retinoic acid during fetal development is known to have teratogenic effects, producing a recognizable embryopathy. CASE: We describe a case of retinoic acid embryopathy secondary to maternal isotretinoin use until the ninth week of gestation and expand the phenotype to include the rare features of parietal bone agenesis and athelia. Histology of the parietal region showed fibrous tissue with no intramembranous ossification. The fetus also had multiple craniofacial dysmorphisms, thymic agenesis, and transposition of the great arteries with double outlet right ventricle and subaortic perimembranous ventricular septal defect. Neuropathology revealed enlarged ventricles with agenesis of the cerebellar vermis, focal duplication of the central canal and scattered parenchymal ependymal rests, and possible cerebral heterotopias with associated abnormal neuronal lamination. A chromosomal microarray was normal. CONCLUSION: Parietal bone agenesis and athelia are both rare congenital anomalies not previously reported in retinoic acid embryopathy. However, retinoic acid or its degrading enzyme has been demonstrated to exert effects in both of these developmental pathways, offering biological plausibility. We propose that this case may represent an expansion of the phenotype of retinoic embryopathy.

The character of parietal and orbital alterations in the superfamily Hominoidea (families Hominidae [exclusive of Homo] and Hylobotidae).

Parietal external surface disruption routinely referred to as porotic hyperostosis, and orbital alterations (cribra orbitalia), have been attributed to anemia-related bone marrow hyperplasia in humans. A recent study in humans identified that they were actually vascular in nature. Skeletons were examined and epi-illumination surface microscopy was performed on the parietal region and orbit of 156 Hominidae and 123 Hylobotidae to assess if these phenomena were trans-phylogenetic. Trans-cortical channels were recognized on the basis of visualized ectocranial surface defects penetrating the parietal; cribra orbitalia, by alteration of the normally smooth orbital roof appearance. Trans-cortical parietal channels, ranging in size from 20 to 100 µm, are rare in Gorilla and Pan troglodytes and absent in Pan paniscus. They are universally present in adult Pongo abeli and in Hylobatidae, independent of species. Cribra orbitalia was common in Hylobotidae, Pongo pygmaeus and P. abelii, less prevalent in adult P. troglodytes, and not recognized in any Gorilla gorilla or P. paniscus examined. The proliferative form predominated, with the exception of Hylobates concolor and muelleri, in which uncalcified vascular grooves predominated. No correlation was observed between the presence of either trans-cortical channels or cribra orbitalia and fractures, osteoarthritis, or inflammatory arthritis. Parietal alterations observed in apes are trans-cortical channels, analogous to those observed in humans, and do not represent porosity. Similarly, cribra orbitalia in apes is confirmed as vascular in nature. The proliferative form apparently represents calcification of blood vessel walls, indistinguishable from observations in humans. Predominant presence in adults rather than in juveniles suggests that both forms are acquired rather than developmental in derivation. Sex and bone alteration/disease-independence suggests that mechanical, endocrine, and inflammatory phenomena do not contribute to the development of either. Further, independent occurrence of trans-cortical channels and cribra orbitalia suggests that they do not have a shared etiology.

[Osteoblastoma of the parietal bone of the cranial vault: about a case]. / Ostéoblastome de l'os pariétal de la voûte du crâne: à propos d'un cas.

Osteoblastoma is an uncommon primary bone tumor. Its occurrence in the cranial vault is extremely rare. We here report our first case of right parietal bone osteoblastoma in a 46-year old woman with a history of benign cranial traumas. She reported progressive painful, non-inflammatory right parietal bone swelling. Craniocerebral CT scan showed hyperdense bone lesion with sparing of the internal table of the right parietal bone. The patient first underwent biopsy, then complete resection of the bone lesion with methyl-methacrylic cement cranioplasty. The postoperative course was uneventful. Anatomopathological examination showed osteoblastoma with no sign of malignancy. This study and literature review highlight the clinical manifestation, the radiological and anatomopathological features as well as the management of osteoblastoma of the parietal bone of the cranial vault.

Ketamine decreases cell viability of bone explants and impairs bone healing in rats.

BACKGROUND: Ketamine is a widely used anesthetic in experimental medicine. We have also used ketamine for surgical interventions and imaging in rats and found significantly impaired ossification between identically performed experiments, which only differed in the number of anesthetic events. In order to investigate this phenomenon, we estimated the absorbed ionizing radiation and also studied whether ketamine administration has disadvantageous effect on bone cell viability. METHODS: Spongious bone chips and parietal bone disks were harvested from rats. Explants were incubated in stem cell media containing 0.02, 0.2 and 2 mM ketamine. After 3 days of incubation, tetrazolium-based spectrophotometric assay was performed to measure cell viability. Size-specific dose estimation was used to calculate ionizing radiation of computed tomography imaging. RESULTS: We found that ketamine supplementation with 0.2 mM slightly decreased cell viability, while 2 mM caused significant reduction both in the spongious and cortical explants. The cumulative ionizing radiation was found to be negligible compared to irradiation dosages used to impair ossification. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that multiple ketamine administration was responsible for the diminished regenerative potential of bone tissue in the present experimental setup. For this reason, we suggest that ketamine anesthesia should be avoided in studies investigating bone regeneration.

Modified lateral orbitotomy with combined partial zygomatic arch and vertical ramus ostectomies for excision of a frontal and parietal bone osteoma in a dog.

OBJECTIVE: To describe modifications to the lateral orbitotomy for surgical excision of tumors affecting the frontal, parietal, palatine, or temporal bones. STUDY DESIGN: Case report. ANIMAL: A 5-year-old female spayed American pit bull terrier. METHODS: The dog presented for excision of a bone tumor affecting the right frontal and parietal bones. A modified lateral orbitotomy was performed with combined partial zygomatic arch and vertical ramus ostectomies to increase working space and allow drilling of the calvarium ventral to the mass. RESULTS: The dog tolerated the procedure well, and there were no complications from either the ostectomies or the craniectomy. Histopathological examination was consistent with complete excision of an osteoma. The dog survived 2 years with no recurrence and was euthanized due to an intestinal mass. CONCLUSION: The lateral orbitotomy approach can be modified with combined partial zygomatic arch and vertical ramus ostectomies to increase exposure and working space for resection of tumors affecting the frontal, parietal, palatine, or temporal bones.

Primary intradiploic epidermoid cyst: A case report with literature review.

Primary intradiploic epidermoid cyst of the central nervous system (CNS) is a rare disease. More than 200 cases have been reported so far. The lesion can affect every flat bone of the cranium. The pre-operative diagnosis is always misleading. We reported a 61-year-old female with giant primary intradiploic epidermoid cyst in the parietal bone. Surgical resection was performed. The patient recovered well with no complication nor neurologic dysfunction. A literature review of the disease will also be presented here.
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Violence in the Early Bronze Age. Diagnosis of skull lesions using anthropological, taphonomic and scanning electron microscopy techniques.

In this paper we present the study of a skull belonging to a young male from the Italian Bronze Age showing three perimortem injuries on the frontal and parietal bones; the peculiarity of the frontal injury is represented by its singular shape, which may be indicative of the weapon that caused the lesion. The aim of the present study is to examine the traumatic evidence in relation to possible etiological factors, in order to attempt to establish if the lesion occurred peri or post-mortem, and to evaluate if these traumatic injuries could be interpreted as an evidence of interpersonal violence, by combining anthropological, taphonomic and ESEM investigations. The combination of multidisciplinary methods of study can provide important new insights into inter-personal violence.

Long-term self-inflicted craniocerebral penetrating injury with a fatal outcome.

A case of long-term continual self-inflicted penetrating craniocerebral injury to a 59-year-old man with a fatal outcome is reported. The man suffered from paranoid psychosis and alcohol dependence. Over five months, he continually scalped the skin and subcutaneous tissue of his head with a knife until he perforated the skull and dura mater and injured his brain. He eventually sought medical advice, but died after 10 days of hospitalization despite complex conservative treatment. The immediate cause of death was a combination of central nervous system failure and heart failure. The original case presented is sporadic in the forensic literature due to atypical long-term continual self-harm to the head and brain using a sharp object that resulted in perforation of the skull and a fatal outcome. This case also highlights the importance of autopsy to determine the mechanism of injury and cause of death.

Effects of systemic erythropoietin treatment and heterogeneous xenograft in combination on bone regeneration of a critical-size defect in an experimental model.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of systemic EPO treatment alone or in combination with xenogenic bone graft augmentation on bone regeneration. Eleven adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in the present study. Rats were subjected to bilateral 5 mm critical size bone defects on the parietal bones under general anaesthesia. Right parietal bone defects were augmented with xenogenic bone graft and left parietal bone defect was left empty. Rats were randomly assigned for one of the two groups. One group of rats received (i) vehicle (n = 6) and other group received (ii) EPO (500IU kg/day) (n = 5). EPO treatment was continued for 28 days. Vascularization was analysed by immunohistochemical staining of CD31 (PECAM-1) and new bone formation was histomorphometrically evaluated. Xenogenic graft augmentation enhanced bone formation and vascularization significantly in either vehicle or EPO treated groups (p < 0.05). Histomorphometric results of angiogenesis was similar in the EPO treated group and the control group. However, angiogenesis was significantly higher in the combination of systemic EPO treatment with graft augmentation than graft augmentation alone (p < 0.01). Graft augmentation for treatment of critical size bone defects seems essential for proper bone healing. Results of the present study suggest that EPO potentiates the regenerative processes of augmented bone defects.

Photobiomodulation of mesenchymal stem cells encapsulated in an injectable rhBMP4-loaded hydrogel directs hard tissue bioengineering.

Photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy displays relevant properties for tissue healing and regeneration, which may be of interest for the tissue engineering field. Here, we show that PBM is able to improve cell survival and to interact with recombinant human Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4 (rhBMP4) to direct and accelerate odonto/osteogenic differentiation of dental derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). MSCs were encapsulated in an injectable and thermo-responsive cell carrier (Pluronic® F-127) loaded with rhBMP4 and then photoactivated. PBM improved MSCs self-renewal and survival upon encapsulation in the Pluronic® F-127. In the presence of rhBMP4, cell odonto/osteogenic differentiation was premature and markedly improved in the photoactivated MSCs. An in vivo calvarial critical sized defect model demonstrated significant increase in bone formation after PBM treatment. Finally, a balance in the reactive oxygen species levels may be related to the favorable results of PBM and rhBMP4 association. PBM may act in synergism with rhBMP4 and is a promise candidate to direct and accelerate hard tissue bioengineering.

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the scalp extending to the skull: A case report and review of the literature.

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the scalp has increased prevalence in older patients and often presents later in life. Mohs micrographic surgery remains the most effective treatment in most cases. Delayed presentation may result in localized bony invasion or distant metastases. We present a case of an elderly woman presenting with extension of SCC into the parietal bone of the skull.

Intradiploic hematoma in an infant: case report and literature review.

Intradiploic hematoma is extremely rare, especially in infant patients. Less than 15 cases were reported in English literature up to now. Here, we presented another intradiploic hematoma in an infant boy without coagulopathy. A left parietal craniotomy was performed. Post-operative CT showed well-reconstructed skull.

A Unique Type of Birth Trauma Mistaken for Abuse.

Pediatric abusive head trauma is a challenging subject across many disciplines. Of particular importance is the identification of mimics of abuse, so cause and manner of death can be properly assigned. We present the case of suspected child abuse involving an infant who presented unresponsive to the hospital with hypoglycemia, hypothermia, and bilateral parietal fractures. An autopsy revealed fractures associated with organizing scalp hemorrhage and gross leptomeningeal congestion and hemorrhage. The fractures were circular with external displacement, rounded margins, and subperiosteal new bone formation indicative of healing. Birth records revealed vacuum assist and cesarean section delivery. Although vacuum extraction-related injuries are typically cephalohematomas and/or linear fractures, the outbending and circular morphology of the fractures are consistent with vacuum extraction. Moreover, microscopic neuropathological examination revealed hemorrhagic purulent leptomeningitis. This unique case demonstrates the importance of considering birth trauma in the determination of cause and manner of death of an infant.

The effect of experimental diabetes and glycaemic control on guided bone regeneration: histology and gene expression analyses.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of experimental diabetes and metabolic control on intramembranous bone healing following guided bone regeneration (GBR). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ninety-three Wistar rats were allocated to three experimental groups, healthy (H), uncontrolled diabetes (D) and controlled diabetes (CD). Twenty one days following diabetes induction, a standardised 5-mm defect was created at the mid-portion of each parietal bone. In 75 animals (25H, 25D, 25CD), one defect was treated with an intracranial and extracranial membrane according to the GBR principle, and one defect was left empty (control); five animals per group were then randomly sacrificed at 3, 7, 15, 30 and 60 days and processed for decalcified histology. In 18 animals (6H, 6D, 6CD), both defects were treated according to the GBR principle; three animals from each group were then randomly sacrificed at 7 and 15 days of healing and employed for gene expression analysis. RESULTS: Application of the GBR therapeutic principle led to significant bone regeneration even in the D group. However, at 15 and 30 days, the osteogenesis process was impaired by uncontrolled diabetes, as shown by the significant reduction in terms of defect closure (38-42%) and newly formed bone (54-61%) compared to the healthy group. The comparison of the D vs. H group at 15 days of healing yielded the largest number of genes with significantly differential expression, among which various genes associated with the ossification process (bmp4, ltbp4, thra and cd276) were identified. CONCLUSIONS: Uncontrolled diabetes seems to affect early phases of the bone regeneration following GBR. A misregulation of genes and pathways related to cell division, energy production, inflammation and osteogenesis may account for the impaired regeneration process in D rats. Further studies are warranted to optimise the GBR process in this medically compromised patient population.

[Eosinophilic granuloma of the parietal bone of an adult patient with BRAF mutation]. / Éozinofil'naia granulema temennoi kosti s mutatsiei gena BRAF u vzroslogo patsienta.

The paper describes a case of eosinophilic granuloma of the parietal bone in a 32-year-old man. Histological examination revealed a large number of bean-shaped Langerhans cell histiocytes with lobed nuclei and nuclear grooves. The histiocytes alternated with the foci of obvious eosinophilic infiltration and with eosinophilic microabscesses. There were osteoclast-like multinucleated giant cells, bone resorption, and numerous bone rods covered with osteoblast chains. The histiocytes expressed CD1α, langerin, CD68, S100, and p53 (in 90.0% of the tumor cells). The Ki-67 proliferation index was 18.0%. A molecular genetic study identified BRAFV600E mutation (nucleotide substitution s.1799 T>A (p.V600E) in the heterozygous state). Clinical and morphological data and the results of molecular genetic studies led to the conclusion that there was eosinophilic granuloma of the right parietal bone (the unifocal form of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH), type I, group A1, with the monoossal nature of lesion and with BRAFV600E mutation). In adults, this disease is extremely rare (2-5 cases of LCH per million people, bone loss in the fourth decade of life in 2.5% of the patients).

Starch-derived absorbable polysaccharide hemostat enhances bone healing via BMP-2 protein.

Surgical hemostasis is critical in reducing the likelihood of excessive bleeding and blood transfusion. In treating some cases, commonly used hemostatic agent showed limited efficacy and prolonged degradation and clearance, causing an inhibition of bone healing. Starch absorbable polysaccharide (SAPH) is a novel hemostatic agent made from a plant starch, which can be completely absorbed and achieve better hemostatic effects than many commonly used hemostatic agents. However, whether SAPH can induce a promotion of bone healing remains unknown. In this study, we used a model of rabbit parietal bone defect and a mouse osteoblast cell line MC3T3-E1 to evaluate the effects of SAPH on bone healing. We found that SAPH significantly decreased bone healing scores, reduced defective area of parietal bone, and increased the areas of bone trabeculae and cavitas medullaris. In addition, SAPH enhanced MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts proliferation, up-regulated the expressions of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin and increased the level of bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2) in MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts. These SAPH-induced benefits in MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts were significantly abolished by the application of BMP-2-siRNA. These findings suggested that SAPH enhances bone healing, promotes the proliferation, differentiation and maturation of osteoblast by up-regulating BMP-2 expression in osteoblastic cells.

[A case report for giant cholesteatoma occurred in fronto-parietal bone].

Cholesteatoma is a destructive and expanding growth benign tumor, mainly consisting of stratified squamous epithelium. It possesses the capacity of eroding bone and can exist in a nonaggressive state, remaining undetected for years. Once cholesteatoma appeared, it grows relentlessly and threats to invade intra-temporal structures. Most cholesteatomas occurred in the petrous bone and also affected the labyrinth and middle cranial fossa. Here, we report a preliminary wrongly-diagnosed case. The patient was wrongly diagnosed as "sebaceous cyst with infection" by local hospital. The definite diagnosis was made after the surgery performed by our department, which was confirmed by pathological result. So far, there were few reports of giant cholesteatoma which occurs in fronto-parietal part of skull with bone defect.