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Background Several meta-analyses comparing the outcome of awake versus asleep deep brain stimulation procedures could not reveal significant differences concerning the postoperative improvement of motor symptoms. Only rarely information on the procedural details is provided for awake operations and how often somnolence and disorientation occurred, which might hamper the reliability of intraoperative clinical testing. The aim of our study was to investigate possible influencing factors on the occurrence of somnolence and disorientation in awake DBS procedures. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 122 patients with Parkinson's disease having received implantation of a DBS system at our centre. Correlation analyses were performed for the duration of disease prior to surgery, number of microelectrode trajectories, AC-PC-coordinates of the planned target, UPDRS-scores, intraoperative application of sedative drugs, duration of the surgical procedure, perioperative application of apomorphine, and the preoperative L-DOPA equivalence dosage with the occurrence of intraoperative somnolence and disorientation. Results Patients with intraoperative somnolence were significantly older (p=0.039). Increased duration of the DBS procedure (p=0.020), delayed start of the surgery (p=0.049), higher number of MER trajectories (p=0.041), and the patients’ % UPDRS improvement (p=0.046) also correlated with the incidence of intraoperative somnolence. We identified the main contributing factor to intraoperative somnolence as the use of sedative drugs applied during skin incision and burr hole trepanation (p=0.019). Perioperatively applied apomorphine could reduce the occurrence of somnolent phases during the operation (p=0.026). Conclusion Several influencing factors were found to seemingly increase the risk of intraoperative somnolence and disorientation, while the use of sedative drugs seems to be the main contributing factor. We argue that awake DBS procedures should omit the use of sedatives for best clinical outcome. When reporting on awake DBS surgery these factors should be considered and adjusted for, to permit reliable interpretation and comparison of DBS study results.

Purpose This study aimed to verify the feasibility, safety, and benefit of using fluorescein sodium (FL) and a YELLOW 560 nm filter in posterior fossa tumors in children. Methods All cases of pediatric posterior fossa tumors that have undergone surgery using fluorescein (2018–2022) have been included and were examined retrospectively. In those cases where resection of the tumor was planned, a blinded neuroradiologist distinguished gross total resection and subtotal resection according to the postoperative MRI findings. The surgical report and medical files were reviewed regarding the intraoperative staining grade and adverse events. The grade of fluorescent staining of the targeted lesion was assessed as described in the surgical reports. The screening was conducted for any reference to the degree of fluorescent staining: “intense,” “medium,” “slight,” and “no staining.” Results 19 cases have been included. In 14 cases, a complete resection was initially intended. In 11 of these cases, a gross total resection could be achieved (78.6%). Staining was described as intense in most cases (58.8%). Except for yellow-colored urine, no side effects obviously related to FL were found throughout the observation period. Conclusion In combination with a specific filter, FL is a reliable, safe, and feasible tool in posterior fossa surgery in children.

PurposeNon-skull base meningiomas (NSBM) are a distinct entity and frequently present with focal neurological deficits. This study was designed to analyze functional and oncological outcome following microsurgical tumor resection in patients with NSBM.Patients and methodsAn analysis of 300 patients that underwent NSBM resection between 2003 and 2013 was performed. Assessment measures for functional outcome were Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS), Medical Research Council - Neurological Performance Scale (MRC-NPS), and improvement rates of focal deficits and seizures. The extent of resection; recurrence-free survival (RFS) and tumor-specific survival (TSS) were also determined.ResultsImpaired KPS and MRC-NPS were present in 73.3% and 45.7%, respectively. Focal neurological deficits were recorded in 123 patients (41.0%), with hemiparesis (21.7%) and aphasia (9.3%) the most prevalent form of impairment. Most meningiomas were localized at the convexity (64.0%), followed by falcine tumors (20.3%). Both KPI and MRC-NPS scores were significantly improved by surgical resection. Postoperative improvement rates of 96.6%, 89.3%, 72.3%, 57.9%, and 27.3% were observed for aphasia, epilepsy, hemiparesis, cranial nerve, and visual field deficits, respectively. Long-term improvement was achieved in 83.2%, 89.3%, 80.0%, 68.4% and 54.6% of patients, respectively. Gross total resection (GTR) over subtotal resection (STR) significantly improved preoperative seizures and visual field deficits and correlated with reduced risk of new postoperative hemiparesis. Poor Simpson grade was the only significant prognostic factor in multivariate analysis for long-term functional deficit, which occurred in 7.3%. Median RFS was 45.9 months (6.0 - 151.5 months), while median TSS was 53.7 months (3.1 – 153.2 months). Both WHO grade (p= 0.001) and Simpson classification (p= 0.014 and p= 0.031) were independent significant prognostic factors for decreased RFS and TSS by multivariate analysis, respectively. Furthermore, tumor diameter > 50 mm (p= 0.039) significantly correlated with decreased TSS in multivariate analysis.ConclusionSurgical resection significantly and stably improves neurological deficits in patients with NSBM.

BackgroundThe pronociceptive neuromediator calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is associated with pain transmission and modulation. After spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage (sSAH), the vasodilatory CGRP is excessively released into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum and modulates psycho-behavioral function. In CSF, the hypersecretion of CGRP subacutely after good-grade sSAH was significantly correlated with an impaired health-related quality of life (hrQoL). Now, we prospectively analyzed the treatment-specific differences in the secretion of endogenous CGRP into serum after good-grade sSAH and its impact on hrQoL.MethodsTwenty-six consecutive patients (f:m = 13:8; mean age 50.6 years) with good-grade sSAH were enrolled (drop out n = 5): n = 9 underwent endovascular aneurysm occlusion, n = 6 microsurgery, and n = 6 patients with perimesencephalic SAH received standardized intensive medical care. Plasma was drawn daily from day 1 to 10, at 3 weeks, and at the 6-month follow-up (FU). CGRP levels were determined with competitive enzyme immunoassay in duplicate serum samples. All patients underwent neuropsychological self-report assessment after the onset of sSAH (t1: day 11–35) and at the FU (t2).ResultsDuring the first 10 days, the mean CGRP levels in serum (0.470 ± 0.10 ng/ml) were significantly lower than the previously analyzed mean CGRP values in CSF (0.662 ± 0.173; p = 0.0001). The mean serum CGRP levels within the first 10 days did not differ significantly from the values at 3 weeks (p = 0.304). At 6 months, the mean serum CGRP value (0.429 ± 0.121 ng/ml) was significantly lower compared to 3 weeks (p = 0.010) and compared to the first 10 days (p = 0.026). Higher mean serum CGRP levels at 3 weeks (p = 0.001) and at 6 months (p = 0.005) correlated with a significantly poorer performance in the item pain, and, at 3 weeks, with a higher symptom burden regarding somatoform syndrome (p = 0.001) at t2.ConclusionOur study reveals the first insight into the serum levels of endogenous CGRP in good-grade sSAH patients with regard to hrQoL. In serum, upregulated CGRP levels at 3 weeks and 6 months seem to be associated with a poorer mid-term hrQoL in terms of pain. In migraineurs, CGRP receptor antagonists have proven clinical efficacy. Our findings corroborate the potential capacity of CGRP in pain processing.

Objective: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) WHO°IV is the most frequent and at the same time prognostically most unfavorable brain tumor with a heterogeneous appearance in MRI. Recent publications have shown that GBMs grouped into three phenotypically different subtypes are associated with significant [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: Tumor cell invasion has been demonstrated to be enhanced by inflammatory cytokines such as IL-17A, IL-22, IL-23 and CCL20 in various tumor entities other than glioblastoma (GBM). We have tested the impact of these factors on GBM migration and invasion utilizing four different in vitro techniques. [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: Anosmia and dysgeusia are discussed as specific symptoms with respect to COVID-19. As preceding studies found alterations in the olfactory bulbus in MRI analyses in patients with anosmia, the aim of our study was to analyse cortical neuroplastic alterations in the olfactory system in patients [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: Planning is a crucial factor for successful treatment in neurosurgery. 3D visualization (3D) and virtual reality (VR) allows for superior image data presentation, condenses image information and accommodates our stereopsis habits. We developed a neurosurgical planning tool which allows 3D [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: The expression level of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PDL-1) might be an indicator for response to immunotherapy using checkpoint inhibitors in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). As intra-tumoral differences and discrepancies between the PDL-1 expression in the primary tumor [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: To specifically identify invasive glioblastoma (GBM) cells we used Laser Microdissection in GBM specimen acquired during 5-ALA supported resection. We addressed several obstacles to optimize the dissection protocol: a. stability of the Protoporphyin IX fluorescence after retrieval of the [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: SARS-CoV-2 was first reported in Wuhan, China, at the beginning of 2020 leading to a global pandemic in the following. Though COVID-19 is mainly discussed in the context of respiratory symptoms, neurological symptoms are present in many patients. The aim of our study was to investigate subcortical [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Objective: Gliomagenesis is a highly relevant topic that has not yet been fully understood. Studies suggest that high-grade gliomas, such as GBMs, originally derive from neural precursor cells. There are two regions in the human brain containing large pools of neural stem cells, first the subventricular [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

OBJECTIVEClinical evidence on giant intracranial aneurysms (GIAs), intracranial aneurysms with a diameter of at least 25 mm, is limited. The authors aimed to investigate the natural history, case fatality, and treatment outcomes of ruptured and unruptured GIAs.METHODSIn this international observational registry study, patients with a ruptured or unruptured GIA received conservative management (CM), surgical management (SM), or endovascular management (EM). The authors investigated rupture rates and case fatality.RESULTSThe retrospective cohort comprised 219 patients with GIAs (21.9% ruptured GIAs and 78.1% unruptured GIAs) whose index hospitalization occurred between January 2006 and November 2016. The index hospitalization in the prospective cohort (362 patients with GIAs [17.1% ruptured and 82.9% unruptured]) occurred between December 2008 and February 2017. In the retrospective cohort, the risk ratio for death at a mean follow-up of 4.8 years (SD 2.2 years) after CM, compared with EM and SM, was 1.63 (95% CI 1.23–2.16) in ruptured GIAs and 3.96 (95% CI 2.57–6.11) in unruptured GIAs. In the prospective cohort, the 1-year case fatality in ruptured GIAs/unruptured GIAs was 100%/22.0% during CM, 36.0%/3.0% after SM, and 39.0%/12.0% after EM. Corresponding 1-year rupture rates in unruptured GIAs were 25.0% during CM, 1.2% after SM, and 2.5% after EM. In unruptured GIAs, the HR for death within the 1st year in patients with posterior circulation GIAs was 6.7 (95% CI 1.5–30.4, p < 0.01), with patients with a GIA at the supraclinoid internal carotid artery as reference. Different sizes of unruptured GIAs were not associated with 1-year case fatality.CONCLUSIONSRupture rates for unruptured GIAs were high, and the natural history and treatment outcomes for ruptured GIAs were poor. Patients undergoing SM or EM showed lower case fatality and rupture rates than those undergoing CM. This difference in outcome may in part be influenced by patients in the CM group having been found poor candidates for SM or EM.Clinical trial registration no.: NCT02066493 (clinicaltrials.gov)

PurposeBrain metastases (BM) can present a displacing or infiltrating growth pattern, independent of the primary tumor type. Previous studies have shown that tumor cell infiltration at the macro-metastasis/brain parenchyma interface (MMPI) is correlated with poor outcome. Therefore, a pre-therapeutic, non-invasive detection tool for potential metastatic cell infiltration at the MMPI would be desirable to help identify patients who may benefit from a more aggressive local treatment strategy. The aim of this study was to identify specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) patterns at the MMPI in patients with BM and to correlate these patterns with patient outcome.Patients and MethodsIn this retrospective analysis of a prospective BM registry, we categorized preoperative MR images of 261 patients with BM according to a prespecified analysis system, which consisted of four MRI contrast enhancement (CE) patterns: two with apparently regularly shaped borders (termed “rim-enhancing” and “spherical”) and two with irregular delineation (termed “breakout” and “diffuse”). The primary outcome parameter was overall survival (OS). Additionally analyzed prognostic parameters were the Karnofsky Performance Index, tumor size, edema formation, extent of resection, and RPA class.ResultsOS of patients with a breakout pattern was significantly worse than OS of all other groups.ConclusionOur data show that BM with a breakout pattern have a highly aggressive clinical course. Patients with such a pattern potentially require a more aggressive local and systemic treatment strategy.

Introduction Maximal resection of high-grade glioma (HGG) improves progression–free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Fluorescein sodium (FL) in combination with the YELLOW 560 ​nm filter (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany) is a safe and feasible method of visualizing residual tumor tissue during brain tumor resection. Research question We hypothesized that use of FL positively influenced the volumetric extent of resection (EOR), PFS, and OS in patients undergoing resection of a newly diagnosed HGG. Materials and method Using a prospective HGG registry, we identified 347 patients (median age 62.4 years; 141 women) with preoperative high-quality magnetic resonance images for volumetric analysis. Resection was performed under white light in n ​= ​151 (43.5%, white-light group) and under FL-guidance in n ​= ​196 (56.5%, FL group). Sex, age, presurgical Karnofsky Performance Index (KPI), O6-Methylguanin-DNA-Methyltransferase-Gene (MGMT) status, and adjuvant treatment modalities were well balanced between the groups. Volumetric analysis was performed by quantifying pre- and postoperative tumor volume based on gadolinium-enhanced T1 sequences in a blinded fashion. Results In the FL group, postoperative tumor volume was significantly smaller (p ​= ​0.003); accordingly, quantitative EOR was significantly larger (p ​= ​0.003). Significantly more complete resections were achieved in the FL group than in the white-light group (p ​= ​0.003). The FL group showed significantly longer PFS (p ​= ​0.020) and OS (p ​= ​0.015, log rank testing). Multivariate Cox regression modelling showed age, presurgical KPI, MGMT status, and FL-guided resection to be independent prognostic factors for survival. Discussion and conclusion Compared to white-light resection, FL-guided resection of newly diagnosed HGG significantly improved EOR and prolonged OS.

Objective: Few cerebral aneurysms are not completely clippable or even unclippable due to small size and/or difficult morphology. In some cases, the aneurysm can be clipped partially and the remnant is wrapped with muscle, cotton and glue (clip-wrapping), or, the aneurysm is wrapped solely. In [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 72. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Polnischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Computation Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is a well established tool to investigate hemodynamics in vascular geometries. Various authors found correlations between specific CFD-parameters and intraoperatively thin-appearing aneurysm wall regions. Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), providing tissue[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 72. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Polnischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Mapping language capacity with its subfunctions during direct cortical stimulation (DCS) in the stetting of awake craniotomy might be challenging without using more than one language paradigm. Applying several language tasks leads to increasing surgery times and to patient’s exhaustion.[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 72. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Polnischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Preceding studies found a main influence of the dentato-rubro-thalamic tract (DRTT) in the mechanisms of Essential Tremor. However, the influence of different parts of the DRTT, consisting of a ipsilateral and a decussating part, has not been investigated yet with respect to tremor reduction.[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 72. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Polnischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Simple Summary Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in patients with brain tumors enables the visualization of eloquent cortical areas and can be used for planning surgical interventions and assessing the risk of postoperative functional deficits. While preoperative fMRI paradigms used to determine the localization of speech-critical or motor areas dominate the literature, there are hardly any studies that investigate the retinotopic organization of the visual field in patients with occipital lesions or tumors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a brain tumor or space-occupying brain lesions on the retinotopic organization of the occipital cortex, the activation of and the functional connectivity between cortical areas involved in visual processing. We found a high degree of similarity in the activation profiles of patients and healthy controls, indicating that the retinotopic organization of the visual cortex can reliably be described by fMRI retinotopic mapping as part of the preoperative examination of patients with tumors and space-occupying brain lesions. Abstract Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a valuable tool in the clinical routine of neurosurgery when planning surgical interventions and assessing the risk of postoperative functional deficits. Here, we examined how the presence of a brain tumor or lesion in the area of the occipital lobe affects the results of fMRI retinotopic mapping. fMRI data were evaluated on a retrospectively selected sample of 12 patients with occipital brain tumors, 7 patients with brain lesions and 19 control subjects. Analyses of the cortical activation, percent signal change, cluster size of the activated voxels and functional connectivity were carried out using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM12) and the CONN and Marsbar toolboxes. We found similar but reduced patterns of cortical activation and functional connectivity between the two patient groups compared to a healthy control group. Here, we found that retinotopic organization was well-preserved in the patients and was comparable to that of the age-matched controls. The results also showed that, compared to the tumor patients, the lesion patients showed higher percent signal changes but lower values in the cluster sizes of the activated voxels in the calcarine fissure region. Our results suggest that the lesion patients exhibited results that were more similar to those of the control subjects in terms of the BOLD signal, whereas the extent of the activation was comparable to that of the tumor patients.

Introduction: To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of the innovative micro-inspection tool QEVO® (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Oberkochen, Germany) as an endoscopic adjunct to microscopes for better visualization of the surgical field in complex deep-seated intracranial tumors in infants and adults. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively assessed the surgical videos of 25 consecutive patients with 26 complex intracranial lesions (time frame 2018–2020). Lesions were classified according to their anatomical area: 1 = sellar region (n = 6), 2 = intra-ventricular (except IV.ventricle, n = 9), 3 = IV.ventricle and rhomboid fossa (n = 4), and 4 = cerebellopontine angle (CPA) and foramen magnum (n = 7). Indications to use the QEVO® tool were divided into five “QEVO® categories”: A = target localization, B = tailoring of the approach, C = looking beyond the lesion, D = resection control, and E = inspection of remote areas. Results: Overall, the most frequent indications for using the QEVO® tool were categories D (n = 19), C (n = 17), and E (n = 16). QEVO® categories B (n = 8) and A (n = 5) were mainly applied to intra-ventricular procedures (anatomical area 2). Discussion: The new micro-inspection tool QEVO® is a powerful endoscopic device to support the comprehensive visualization of complex intracranial lesions and thus instantly increases intraoperative morphological understanding. However, its use is restricted to the specific properties of the respective anatomical area.

The multidisciplinary management of patients with brain metastases (BM) consists of surgical resection, different radiation treatment modalities, cytotoxic chemotherapy, and targeted molecular treatment. This review presents the current state of neurosurgical technology applied to achieve maximal resection with minimal morbidity as a treatment paradigm in patients with BM. In addition, we discuss the contribution of neurosurgical resection on functional outcome, advanced systemic treatment strategies, and enhanced understanding of the tumor biology.

In patients with brain metastases (BM), advanced age is considered a negative prognostic factor. To address the potential reasons for that, we assessed 807 patients who had undergone BM resection, 315 patients aged at least 65 years (group A) were compared with 492 younger patients (group B). We analyzed the impact of the pre- and postoperative Karnofsky performance status (KPS), postoperative treatment structure and post-treatment survival. BM resection significantly improved KPS scores in both groups (p = 0.0001). Median survival after BM resection differed significantly between the groups (A: 5.81 vs. B: 8.12 months, p = 0.0015). In both groups, patients who received postoperative systemic treatment showed significantly longer overall survival (p = 0.00001). However, elderly patients less frequently received systemic treatment (p = 0.0001) and the subgroup of elderly patients receiving such therapies had a significantly higher postsurgical KPS score (p = 0.0007). In all patients receiving systemic treatment, age was no longer a negative prognostic factor. Resection of BM improves the functional status of elderly patients, thus enhancing the likeliness to receive systemic treatment, which, in turn, leads to longer overall survival. In the context of such a treatment structure, age alone is no longer a prognostic factor for survival.

Introduction: The application of neuro-endoscopes in cerebral aneurysm surgery may help to avoid unintended aneurysm remnants and the accidental clipping of perforating arteries and aid the detection of blood collecting in the subdural spaces. Here, we present our experience with the novel endoscopic micro-inspection tool QEVO (R) (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany) in aneurysm surgery. Materials and Equipment: In all patients the surgical microscope KINEVO (R) (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany) and the Microinspection tool QEVO (R) were applied. Methods: The case series comprises 22 unruptured cerebral aneurysms of the anterior circulation. All aneurysms were treated surgically. All patients routinely underwent computed tomography and digital subtraction angiography within 10 days after surgery. Results: No aneurysm remnants, cerebral ischemic deficits, or subdural hematomas were detected. Discussion: In this technical note, we discuss the benefits and limitations of the QEVO (R) tool and illustrate the major paradigms by means of intraoperative photographs.

Objective: The aim of our study was to investigate which subcorticalfiber tracts and cortical areas are involved in the occurrence of side-effects in deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease. Methods: 21 patients with Parkinson’s disease and bilaterally implanted electrodes [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 71. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), 9. Joint Meeting mit der Japanischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Hemodynamic parameters and the flow situation inside intracranial aneurysms have great influence on the risk of rupture. Therefore, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a frequently used tool for rupture risk assessment [ref:1]. However, there are great differences between different[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 71. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), 9. Joint Meeting mit der Japanischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Implantation of a cranioplasty after osteoclastic craniotomy or craniectomy is one of the most common neurosurgical procedures, and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) is one of the most frequently applied materials for cranioplasty. This report describes the unique case of a patient with recurrent transitional meningioma WHO I that infiltrated the PMMA cranioplasty 7 years after primary surgery. We propose to restrict the use of porous PMMA as cranioplasty after the removal of convexity meningioma.

Objective: Maximal surgical resection of glioblastoma (GBM) has been demonstrated to improve progression–free survival and overall survival. Recently, fluorescein sodium in combination with the YELLOW 560 nm filter (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany) (FY) has been introduced as a safe and feasible [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL]

Isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-1 mutation is an important prognostic factor and a potential therapeutic target in glioma. Immunohistological and molecular diagnosis of IDH mutation status is invasive. To avoid tumor biopsy, dedicated spectroscopic techniques have been proposed to detect D-2-hydroxyglutarate (2-HG), the main metabolite of IDH, directly in vivo. However, these methods are technically challenging and not broadly available. Therefore, we explored the use of machine learning for the non-invasive, inexpensive and fast diagnosis of IDH status in standard 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS). To this end, 30 of 34 consecutive patients with known or suspected glioma WHO grade II-IV were subjected to metabolic positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with O-(2-18F-fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine (18F-FET) for optimized voxel placement in 1H-MRS. Routine 1H-magnetic resonance (1H-MR) spectra of tumor and contralateral healthy brain regions were acquired on a 3 Tesla magnetic resonance (3T-MR) scanner, prior to surgical tumor resection and molecular analysis of IDH status. Since 2-HG spectral signals were too overlapped for reliable discrimination of IDH mutated (IDHmut) and IDH wild-type (IDHwt) glioma, we used a nested cross-validation approach, whereby we trained a linear support vector machine (SVM) on the complete spectral information of the 1H-MRS data to predict IDH status. Using this approach, we predicted IDH status with an accuracy of 88.2%, a sensitivity of 95.5% (95% CI, 77.2&ndash, 99.9%) and a specificity of 75.0% (95% CI, 42.9&ndash, 94.5%), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) amounted to 0.83. Subsequent ex vivo 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) measurements performed on metabolite extracts of resected tumor material (eight specimens) revealed myo-inositol (M-ins) and glycine (Gly) to be the major discriminators of IDH status. We conclude that our approach allows a reliable, non-invasive, fast and cost-effective prediction of IDH status in a standard clinical setting.

Objective: A score combining Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) and pupil response (GCS-P) as well as the Eppendorf-Köln Scale (ECS) have been introduced as novel trauma scores recently. This study aims to evaluate the prognostic value of these scores in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Methods:[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 70. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Skandinavischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Intraventricular tumors represent a rare and challenging neurosurgical entity. Complete surgical resection is the treatment of choice, if feasible, for any tumor identity. Here, we report 97 patients with classical primary intraventricular tumors that underwent surgery at our institution.[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 70. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Skandinavischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Molecular markers in glioma are essential for diagnosis, treatment and prognosis. Isocitrate-dehydrogenase 1/2 (IDH1/2) is one of the major diagnostic classifiers which plays a significant role in tumor metabolism. So far it is a postoperative immuno-histological or molecular diagnosis.[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 70. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Skandinavischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: The pathophysiology of delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) is still incompletely understood. Intrathecal inflammatory immune activation is suspected to play a major role for the induction of vasospasm and DCI. The aim of this study is to identify[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 70. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Skandinavischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH) remains a serious, life-threatening disease associated with high morbidity and mortality despite recent advances in neurocritical care as well as neurosurgical and endovascular treatment options. A multitude of pathological processes, such as inflammatory[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 70. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Skandinavischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

OBJECTIVE Malignant gliomas metabolize glucose preferably by glycolysis which is in accordance with the Warburg effect. This induces a high demand of glucose combined with a significant lactic acid load. The hypoxia-inducible carbonic anhydrase (CA) IX has been shown to moderate the extrusion of hydrogen ions into the extracellular space. Since the acidification of the extracellular environment contributes to host tissue invasion due to activation of proteolytic enzymes, we hypothesized that CA IX plays an important role in malignant glioma Recently, specific small molecule inhibitors of this enzyme have been developed and may provide an innovative strategy for anti – invasive treatment. METHODS Two established and 4 primary GBM cell lines (2 with mesenchymal and 2 with proneural transcriptional profile) were exposed to the CAIX inhibitor U104 under normoxic and hypoxic conditions. Cell toxicity was measured by ATP and crystal violet assay. For invasion assessment, a matrigel invasion chamber system with 8 µm pore size polycarbonate filter was used. CAIX expression was analyzed by quantitative RTPCR and Western Blot. RESULTS Hypoxia significantly induced CAIX expression in all cell lines. Invasiveness increased significantly under hypoxic conditions in the mesenchymal cells (p < 0.01). Regardless of oxygenation status, the mesenchymal group displayed significantly higher invasiveness compared to the proneural group (p = 0.006). Looking at all cell lines, invasion is significantly inhibited by U104, both under normoxic and hypoxic conditions (p < 0.01). However, while the mesenchymal group showed the highest susceptibility to CAIX inhibition followed by the proneurally differentiated group, the established cell lines were entirely refractory to CAIX inhibition. CONCLUSION Our data demonstrate that CAIX inhibition can effectively inhibit invasion in malignant glioma cells independent from oxygenation status, however the effects are significantly influenced by cell type specific biological features.

The archetypal imaging characteristics of meningiomas are among the most stereotypic of all central nervous system (CNS) tumors. In the era of plain film and ventriculography, imaging was only performed if a mass was suspected, and their results were more suggestive than definitive. Following more than a century of technological development, we can now rely on imaging to non-invasively diagnose meningioma with great confidence and precisely delineate the locations of these tumors relative to their surrounding structures to inform treatment planning. Asymptomatic meningiomas may be identified and their growth monitored over time; moreover, imaging routinely serves as an essential tool to survey tumor burden at various stages during the course of treatment, thereby providing guidance on their effectiveness or the need for further intervention. Modern radiological techniques are expanding the power of imaging from tumor detection and monitoring to include extraction of biologic information from advanced analysis of radiological parameters. These contemporary approaches have led to promising attempts to predict tumor grade and, in turn, contribute prognostic data. In this supplement article, we review important current and future aspects of imaging in the diagnosis and management of meningioma, including conventional and advanced imaging techniques using CT, MRI, and nuclear medicine.

Objective: Brain lesions in language-related cortical areas remain a challenge in clinical routine. In recent years, resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) has been shown to be a feasible method for preoperative language assessment. This study examined whether language-related[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 69. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Mexikanischen und Kolumbianischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Thyroid dysfunction has been associated with aortic aneurysms and vascular dysfunction, however, there is limited data available on the prevalence of hypothyroidism in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). We hypothesized that the prevalence of hypothyroidism at admission[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 69. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Mexikanischen und Kolumbianischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) show an inherent brain tumor cell tropism that can be exploited for targeted delivery of therapeutic genes to invasive glioma. We assessed whether a motile stem cell-based local immunmodulation is able to overcome the immunosuppressive GBM microenvironment and[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 69. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), Joint Meeting mit der Mexikanischen und Kolumbianischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie

Objective: Intraventricular ependymal tumors in adults represent a rare and challenging neurosurgical entity. The role of radiotherapy is subject to controversial discussion and chemotherapy has shown to be ineffective, therefore complete surgical resection remains the treatment of choice, but scientific[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 68. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), 7. Joint Meeting mit der Society of British Neurological Surgeons (SBNS)

Objective: The risk for intracranial aneurysms (IA) and aneurysmatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is increased among patient’s family members, however, the genetic background of the disease is still poorly understood. Although large genome wide association studies identified several single nucleotide[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 68. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), 7. Joint Meeting mit der Society of British Neurological Surgeons (SBNS)

Intracranial aneurysms (IA) are usually quantified according to their largest diameter. However, volumetry has recently been increasingly conducted as well, especially in giant intracranial aneurysms (GIAs). Since so far the true value of GIA volumetry is unknown, we designed a trial to examine correlations between GIA diameter and volume with special focus on clinical implications. Magnetic resonance imaging of 69 unruptured GIAs in 66 patients was retrospectively evaluated. The largest diameter and volume were measured. Also, potential associations to the patients’ clinical conditions were examined. Comparing GIA sizes of our patient cohort produced different results depending on whether GIA diameter or volume was measured. Measuring the diameter identified posterior circulation GIAs as the largest ones (39.2 mm, IQR 37.3–48.3), while measuring the volume found GIAs of the MCA to be the largest ones (12.3 cm3, IQR 7.2–27.8). A correlation of GIA diameter and volume was only found in anterior circulation GIAs, which were predominantly saccular in shape, but not in those of the posterior circulation, of which most were fusiform. Neither GIA diameter nor GIA volume but only GIA location was associated with neurological deficits. Diameter and volume measurements are not interchangeable modes of GIA quantification. Our data suggest that the idea of distinguishing different sizes of GIA may be clinically less relevant than examining their location, shape or mass effect.

Objective: According to ISUIA, cerebral aneurysms smaller than 7mm are believed to be associated with a low bleeding risk. However, other studies reported that a significant portion of ruptured aneurysms was smaller than 7 mm, which is in line with our clinical practice. The purpose of this study was[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 66. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC)

Objective: The surgical management of lesions ventrally to the neuroaxis at the level of the craniovertebral junction (CVJ) and upper cervical spine is challenging. Here, we describe a minimal invasive dorsal approach for small ventrally located intradural lesions at the CVJ as an alternative for the[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 66. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC)

Objective: Warning criteria for monitoring of motor evoked potentials (MEP) after direct cortical stimulation during surgery of supratentorial tumors have been well described. However, little is known about the value of MEP after transcranial electrical stimulation (TES) in predicting postoperative [for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 66. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC)

OBJECT The underlying mechanisms causing intracranial perianeurysmal edema (PAE) are still poorly understood. Since PAE is most frequently observed in giant intracranial aneurysms (GIAs), the authors designed a study to examine the occurrence of PAE in relation to the location, size, and partial thrombosis (PT) of GIAs along with the clinical impact of PAE. METHODS Magnetic resonance imaging data for patients with a diagnosis of unruptured GIA from the international multicenter Giant Intracranial Aneurysm Registry were retrospectively analyzed with regard to location and size of the GIA, PAE volume, and the presence of PT. The occurrence of PAE was correlated to clinical findings. RESULTS Imaging data for 69 GIAs were eligible for inclusion in this study. Perianeurysmal edema was observed in 33.3% of all cases, with the highest frequency in GIAs of the middle cerebral artery (MCA; 68.8%) and the lowest frequency in GIAs of the cavernous internal carotid artery (ICA; 0.0%). Independent predictors of PAE formation were GIA volume (OR 1.13, p = 0.02) and the occurrence of PT (OR 9.84, p = 0.04). Giant intracranial aneurysm location did not predict PAE occurrence. Giant aneurysms with PAE were larger than GIAs without PAE (p < 0.01), and GIA volume correlated with PAE volume (rs = 0.51, p = 0.01). Perianeurysmal edema had no influence on the modified Rankin Scale score (p = 0.30 or the occurrence of aphasia (p = 0.61) or hemiparesis (p = 0.82). CONCLUSIONS Perianeurysmal edema was associated with GIA size and the presence of PT. As no PAE was observed in cavernous ICA aneurysms, even though they exerted mass effect on the brain and also displayed PT, the dura mater may serve as a barrier protecting the brain from PAE formation.

Objective: Pediatric patients constitute an unqiue subgroup of all cerebral AVM cases. Management of pediatric AVMs requires profound knowledge regarding the natural history of the lesion as well as associated treatment risks. Identification of children with AVMs that are more prone to bleed provides[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 64. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC)

Objective: Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is still associated with high morbidity and mortality. Therefore, specialized neurointensive care is desirable in the acute stage in order to prevent major clinical impairment in the critical first hours post-injury. Our objective was to evaluate the clinical[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 64. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC)

Objective: This study evaluates the clinical results and quality of life (QoL) after surgical treatment for trigeminal neuralgia (TN) in patients over 70 years. Methods: A total of 96 TN-patients were treated between 1998–2009 in which microvascular decompression (MVD) or percutaneous electrocoagulation[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], 61. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC) im Rahmen der Neurowoche 2010