Intraventricular morphine for intractable craniofacial pain.

This case management report on a patient with advanced craniofacial neoplasm discusses the successful treatment of chronic pain by the cortical intraventricular narcotic administration. A previously treated patient with surgery and radiotherapy for carcinoma of the palate developed severe intractable pain despite high dose oral morphine therapy. Investigations revealed that neoplasm had reoccurred with extensive infiltration. Intraventricular morphine therapy was discussed and accepted by the patient and family. A ventricular shunt with an Ommaya reservoir was inserted under local anaesthesia. Preservative-free morphine sulphate in increasing doses of 0.25 to 1 mg was administered, once daily, which kept the patient in a pain-free state. The treatment was initiated in the hospital and continued at home till the demise of the patient on the 9th week. The home care was provided by the nurses of Home Nursing Foundation and Singapore Cancer Society under physician supervision. There were no complications which had been reported in the literature, observed in the management of this patient.

The surgery of cranial arteriovenous malformations.

Arteriovenous malformations are a common cause of subarachnoid haemorrhage in Singapore because of its relatively young population. This series comprises 86 patients with cranial AVM's all of whom were treated by excisional surgery. 79 of these patients had cerebral lesions and 76 of these presented with subarachnoid haemorrhage. The techniques employed in surgical excision of these lesions are described and the results of other therapeutic techniques evaluated. To date, surgical excision appears to be the safest and only proven method of treatment. This view is strengthened by an operative mortality of under 4% in this series.

Two tumours of the carotid bifurcation.

Two cases of tumours of the carotid bifurcation are reported here with the objective of outlining a rational approach to their management. A review of the literature confirms that the bad results of surgical treatment are largely due to jeopardization of the carotid circulation at the time of operation. Carotid angiography is therefore essential not only to confirm the anatomical diagnosis but also to provide an indication of the adequacy of the carotid circulation. It is a sine qua non for rational operative decisions which form the basis of safe excisional surgery of these tumours.

Recovery from aphasia and conversion of handedness: a case report.

A remarkably rapid and complete recovery from aphasia and conversion from right to left handedness was documented in a hemiplegic individual after surgery for an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in the dominant hemisphere. The possible mechanisms of recovery were discussed and we have reviewed the literature about the pattern of cerebral dominance. Her rapid recovery could be explained by the co-dominance of the right and left cerebral hemispheres.

Delayed traumatic intracerebral haemorrhage.

Twenty-one out of 7,866 head injuries were complicated by the development of delayed intracerebral haematomata. The age distribution of patients with this condition closely resembled that of patients with subdural haematomata and differed sharply from patients with extradural haemorrhage. This finding, combined with the fact that the two conditions often coexisted, suggests the possibility of similar aetiological factors operating in their production. The injury producing the lesion was often minor and the larger haematomata appeared to be associated with longer `asymptomatic' intervals. The neurological deterioration was in most instances clearly the result of an increase in intracranial pressure. When possible, angiography followed by definitive craniotomy was the most satisfactory method of management and multiple burr holes even when combined with needling of the hemisphere yielded unsatisfactory results. The distribution of lesions tended to confirm their traumatic origin. On no occasion was there a vascular abnormality to account for the haemorrhage and, despite the fact that the ages of most patients were in the seventh and eighth decades, the incidence of degenerative vascular disease was small. Contusional injury causes a local failure of the mechanisms that regulate cerebral blood flow. Hypoxia, hypercapnia, and venous congestion produce cerebral hyperaemia which encourages gradual haematoma formation particularly at the sites of injury. This explains not only the situation of the lesions but also the latency between the trauma and their development.

Bilateral compressive optic neuropathy secondary to bilateral sphenoethmoidal mucoceles.

We have presented a rare case of bilateral posterior sphenoethmoidal sinus mucoceles with bilateral compressive optic neuropathy. While the duration of compression was variably present over a 10-month period, there were nevertheless significant improvements in visual acuity of the right eye and visual fields bilaterally following extensive optic nerve decompression.

Metastatic cerebral choriocarcinoma with primary neurological presentation.

Metastatic choriocarcinoma can present in bizarre fashions. Two cases with primary neurological presentations are reviewed. Cerebral metastases in choriocarcinoma generally denote a poor prognosis. However, in solitary metastases in the brain, craniotomy and excision followed by chemotherapy may be curative as illustrated by the following two cases. The first patient was diagnosed to have brain metastases 1 1/2 years after an evacuation of her molar pregnancy while the other patient developed cerebral choriocarcinoma 5 months following a spontaneous first trimester abortion. Both presented with neurological symptoms. Both patients are alive and well now, 9 and 5 years respectively after craniotomy and chemotherapy. A brief review of current considerations in the management of cerebral metastases in gestational trophoblastic disease is presented.

Spontaneous hematic cysts of the orbit presenting with acute proptosis. A report of three cases.

Three cases of spontaneous hematic cyst of the orbit are described. All cases presented with acute onset of proptosis, conjunctival chemosis, choroidal folds, restricted ocular movement, and optic nerve compression syndrome with very poor vision. A computed tomography scan demonstrated a cystic lesion situated in the upper part of the orbit. Exploration revealed a cyst containing chocolate-colored fluid. Visual recovery was complete in two of three cases. There was no definite history of trauma in all three cases. Chronic hematic cysts have been described recently, but cases with acute onset such as ours have not to our knowledge been described clearly.