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Background: Gliomas are the most common primary tumours of the central nervous system and exhibit rapid growth that is associated with neovascularisation. Adrenomedullin is an important tumour survival factor in human carcinogenesis. It has growth promoting effects on gliomas, and blockade of its actions has been experimentally shown to reduce the growth of glioma tissues and cell lines. There is some evidence that the calcitonin receptor-like receptor (CRLR) mediates the tumorigenic actions of adrenomedullin. Aim: To determine whether CRLR is expressed in human gliomas and the probable cellular targets of adrenomedullin. Methods: Biopsies from 95 human gliomas of varying grade were processed for immunohistochemical analysis using a previously developed and characterised antibody to CRLR. Results: All tumour specimens were positive for CRLR. As previously found in normal peripheral tissues, CRLR immunostaining was particularly intense in the endothelial cells. This was evident in all the various vascular conformations that were observed, and which are typical of gliomas. In addition, clear immunostaining of tumour cells with astrocyte morphology was observed. These were preferentially localised around vessels. Conclusions: This study has shown for the first time that the CRLR protein is present in human glioma tissue. The expression of the receptor in endothelial cells and in astrocytic tumour cells is consistent with the evidence that its endogenous ligand, adrenomedullin, may influence glioma growth by means of both direct mitogenic and indirect angiogenic effects. CRLR may be a valuable target for effective therapeutic intervention in these malignant tumours.

OBJECTIVE To investigate if the intracisternal distribution of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) following aneurysm rupture allows the correct prediction of the symptomatic aneurysm site. [nl] METHODS Ninety-nine consecutive patients with acute SAH and angiographically proven aneurysm were included into the study. The parent vessel of the diagnosed aneurysms were the anterior communicating artery (ACoA) in 38 patients, the middle cerebral artery (MCA) in 26 patients, the internal carotid artery (ICA) in 25 patients, the pericallosal artery (A2) in 5 patients, the basilar artery (BA) in 4 patients and the vertebral artery (VA) in 1 patient. In 21 patients, an additional asymptomatic aneurysm was diagnosed. The initial computerized tomography (CT) scans of the 99 patients were given to 2 experienced vascular neurosurgeons, who were blinded for the angiography findings. The 2 investigators had to predict the site of the ruptured aneurysm. [nl] RESULTS Investigator 1 correctly predicted the aneurysm site in 56 (57 %), investigator 2 in 59 of the 99 patients (60 %). Investigator 1 correctly identified 81 % of the MCA aneurysms, and investigator 2 74 % of the ACoA aneurysms. However, in only 46 of the 99 patients (47 %), the aneurysm site was correctly predicted by both investigators together. [nl] CONCLUSION The results indicate, that the distribution of the subarachnoid blood as shown on the first CT scan after aneurysm rupture barely allows to predict the symptomatic aneurysm site. Thus, neurosurgical decision making (identification of the ruptured aneurysm in patients with multiple aneurysms; surgical exploration in patients with non-perimesencephal SAH, but negative angiography) should not rely on the first CT scan after SAH.

A unilateral laminotomy for bilateral access to the lumbar spinal canal was investigated in human cadaver spine specimens to test its practicability in the treatment of spinal stenosis. Micro-surgical decompression was performed by partial resection of the ipsilateral facet, the medial portion of the laminar arch, the contralateral facet and by complete removal of the ligamentum flavum. Anatomical, radiological and morphometrical studies on 4 adult cadaver spine specimens have proved the feasibility of this unilateral approach. Complete bilateral flavectomy and partial bilateral facetectomy were the essential surgical steps for an adequate operative decompression.

Collins' law, known as period of risk for recurrence (PRR), has been discussed as a reliable scheme for the prediction of recurrence or cure of embryonal tumours including medulloblastomas. The PRR is defined as the age at diagnosis plus 9 months of gestation. According to Collins' law, a patient who has no clinical evidence of recurrence within this time period is considered cured. We have applied this system to 66 patients (age range from 0 to 47 years) who underwent surgery for medulloblastoma at a single center between 1975 and 1990. Three patients in whom a recurrence could not be verified died within 6 months. Eight patients (12.1%, age range from 1 to 14 years) survived the PRR without relapse and are free of risk for recurrence according to Collins' law. Of the remaining 55 patients, 35 showed a relapse within the PRR with a mean latency of 18 months (0-78); Twenty patients are alive with no recurrence as yet, but are still within the PRR Three patients had non-recurrent benign brain tumours not connected to the initial tumours with a mean latency of 10 (8-14) years after medulloblastoma surgery. Thus, all our patients fulfilled the criteria for Collins' law. In conclusion, a patient's risk for medulloblastoma recurrence is significantly higher before than after the completion of the PRR. Therefore, the PRR is a helpful prognostic parameter that provides additional information about the risk of medulloblastoma recurrence. A medulloblastoma cure cannot be presumed with certainty by Collins' law because relapses after the PRR have been reported in other studies (1.4% of the cases). Intracranial lesions detected after a long follow-up might be radiotherapeutically induced second tumours.

The authors report about a 3-years experience with helical CT and 3-D surface reconstruction applied in neurosurgical patients. All examinations were performed in addition to preexisting diagnostic CT, MRI, or angiography. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical value of this method with regard to planning of the surgical approach to anterior, middle, and posterior skull base and spinal lesions. 75 examinations of 55 patients were analysed and ranked as follows: A = examination with significant additional information for neurosurgical planning of skull base or spinal procedures or for postoperative evaluation of the neurosurgical approach, B = examination with some useful information for the neurosurgical planning or postoperative control, however, without significant advantage as compared to established diagnostic methods, C = examination without significant additional information. Classification was performed independently by two experienced surgeons. Examinations of anterior, middle, and posterior skull base lesions including cerebral aneurysms were in the majority rated as helpful and significantly informative, (A = 21, B = 24, C = 9, n = 54). Three-dimensional imaging of the spine was of clinical value only in specific cases (A = 6, B = 6, C = 9, n = 21). The authors conclude that three-dimensional imaging is a valuable diagnostic tool for pre- and postoperative imaging of tumorous and vascular lesions adjacent to the skull base, allowing for optimal surgical approaches with minimal invasiveness.

Six patients with a dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) of the floor of the anterior cranial fossa underwent microsurgical treatment. Two of them were operated using a conventional frontobasal approach, and four using an interhemispheric approach. The interhemispheric approach offers the advantages of sparing the frontal sinus, minimizing frontal lobe retraction, and providing a visual angle perpendicular to the floor of the anterior fossa and an excellent view of the fistula located on the cribriform plate at the level of the foramen caecum. Using the interhemispheric route, the malformation was occluded in all the cases by dividing the vascular connection between the dura of the cribriform plate and the intradural draining vein. There were no complications related to the surgical procedure. This route avoids some disadvantages of the more frequently reported frontobasal approach. It is therefore a recommendable alternative for the management of frontal DAVFs.

Although primary treatment of medulloblastoma is now successful in a high percentage of patients, its secondary manifestations still bear a poor prognosis. Thorough studies of secondary manifestations are therefore pivotal to plan therapeutic approaches for the long-term management of medulloblastoma. Here we describe the incidence of secondary tumour manifestations in 66 patients of a single centre who underwent surgery for medulloblastoma between 1975 and 1990. No patient was excluded due to a poor postoperative course. Thirty-five patients showed evidence of secondary tumour growth. Of these, 17 suffered from local recurrence, and 27 developed metastastatic disease. The median latencies for secondary manifestations were 25 months for local recurrence (n = 17), 11 months for spinal metastases (n = 10), 15 months for supratentorial metastases (n = 8), 8 months for subleptomeningeal dissemination (n = 6), and 23 months for systemic metastases (n = 8). Two patients developed primary metastatic spread to the posterior fossa. Of 8 patients with supratentorial metastases, 6 developed fronto-basal lesions. In our patients, 89% of secondary lesions occurred within less than 3 years after primary diagnosis. 85% of patients with extra-axial tumour spread had been treated with a permanent shunt. Radical tumour resection and radiotherapy with 30 Gy to the neuraxis and 20 Gy boost to the posterior fossa was an important prognostic factor in this series. Patients with additional chemotherapy did not benefit significantly from this treatment. We conclude that optimal management of the primary lesions should aim at (i) total resection, (ii) avoid permanent shunting, and (iii) completion of the radiotherapy with inclusion of the medial frontobasal cisterns in the radiotherapeutic regimen. Our analysis suggests that adequate postoperative screening programmes should consist of 3-monthly scans of the neuraxis in the first three postoperative years and 6-monthly scans thereafter.

Although recently survival of some medulloblastoma patients increased remarkably, it remains a serious diagnosis in others. In order to predict the postoperative prognosis in patients treated for medulloblastoma, a new staging, scoring and grading system was developed. Sixty-six patients operated on microsurgically between 1975 and 1990 at a single neurosurgical center were fully followed-up. No patient was excluded due to a poor postoperative course. Completion of commonly used radiotherapy protocols was attempted in all patients. Survival of patients was evaluated by the Kaplan-Meier method. The following 5 parameters were selected to define subgroups: patients' age, tumour location and histology, degree of resection and presence or absence of metastases. Patients older than 10 years had a better prognosis than individuals aged 10 or less (p < 0.01), patients with lateral tumours had a better prognosis than patients with midline tumours with brain stem infiltration (p < 0.05), patients with complete tumour resection had a more favourable prognosis than individuals with subtotal (p < 0.01) or partial resection (p < 0.001), patients without metastases at the time of diagnosis had a better prognosis than individuals without such evidence (p < 0.001), patients with the desmoplastic tumour variant had a better prognosis than patients with classical tumour histology (p < 0.01). According to the prognosis of a distinct subgroup, scoring points were distributed which correlated with the degree of inter-subgroup significances. The sum of a single patient's scoring points was called the total score. Based on this score, three groups of prognosis were distinguished.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

According to their strategic location, intraaxial lesions of the foramen magnum may cause severe symptoms. The primary goal of surgery is to decompress the lower brain stem and upper cervical cord without additionally impairing the neurological function, or, as in vascular lesions, to eliminate the risk of recurrent bleeding. Secondary goals of surgery are to preserve the atlanto-occipital stability, to minimize traumatization of various muscles in the craniovertebral region, to preserve the sigmoid sinus and jugular bulb and to avoid air embolism or excessive venous bleeding during surgery. The most common intraaxial lesions encountered at the level of the foramen magnum are cavernous malformations, gliomas, ependymomas, and hemangioblastomas. They are located either in the medulla oblongata (up to the pontomedullary junction) or within the cervical cord at the level of C1. These lesions may be located either totally intraaxially, with or without contact to the surface of the brain stem or spinal cord, or, in other instances, they may be partially exophytic (1). Moreover, from the surgical point of view, particularly in terms of accessibility, lesions located in the dorsal and lateral region of the brain stem and spinal cord significantly differ from those located anteriorly or anterolaterally. Hemangioblastomas may sometimes involve the proximal intradural vertebral artery and its branches.

Twelve patients with severe intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH) underwent intraventricular thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA). External ventricular drainage was performed in all patients within 24 hours of haemorrhage. Fibrinolytic therapy was started within 24 hours from the onset of symptoms in ten cases, and in two further cases after 48 hours and 5 days, respectively. Two to 5 mg of rtPA were injected via the ventricular catheter into one or both lateral ventricles. The injection was repeated at intervals ranging from 6 to 24 hours until CT scans demonstrated a substantial reduction of intraventricular blood. The total rtPA doses per patient ranged from 3 to 31 mg. CT scans showed a marked reduction of intraventricular blood and normalization of ventricular size within 24 to 48 hours from the beginning of the fibrinolytic therapy. Rapid reduction of elevated intracranial pressure by continuous diversion of cerebrospinal fluid could be achieved in all patients, because the ventricular catheters never became obstructed by clotted blood during the fibrinolytic therapy. During the period of treatment, the level of consciousness, as classified according to the Glasgow Coma Scale, improved from a mean value of 7 to 12. One fatal case of meningitis most probably due to the ventriculostomy was the only complication related to the treatment. This method of treatment might improve the prognosis in patients in whom a large intraventricular haematoma volume, ventricular dilatation, and impaired cerebrospinal fluid circulation are major determinants for the outcome.

We review here 10 cases of cerebellar infarction and associated occlusive hydrocephalus. Surgical therapy consisted of placement of a permanent shunt in 4, and a temporary external ventricular drainage in 6 individuals. This treatment regimen was effective in 9 cases and remained without adequate response in only 1 patient with multiple supra- and infratentorial infarctions. These results and similar reports from the literature suggest that treatment of the hydrocephalus alone might be sufficient in most cases and should therefore constitute the primary treatment of choice in patients presenting with cerebellar infarction and obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pathways.

The authors review 26 patients with deep-seated cavernous angiomas which were removed by microsurgery. Ten of the angiomas were located in the insula and basal ganglia, 2 in the thalamus, 5 in the midbrain, 8 in the pons, and 1 in the brachium pontis. The patients were among 73 consecutive cases operated on between August 1983 and December 1989 for symptomatic cavernous angiomas in various locations. In 11 cases total excision of the cavernoma was achieved without producing additional neurological deficits. Postoperative neurological recovery was delayed in 7 patients. In the remaining 8, the complicated postoperative course was caused by bleeding from residual parts of the malformation or damage to long-tract pathways in two cases, respectively, vascular injury during dissection in three cases, and paradoxical air embolism in one case. In order to achieve a satisfactory surgical result, it is stressed that particular attention has to be paid to the operative approach, to careful dissection and complete removal of the malformation, to perforating arteries, and to anomalous venous drainage.

The objective of this study was to determine the feasibility, toxicity, and potential therapeutic benefits of an adjuvant active immunotherapy using a tumour specific ganglioside (GD2) conjugate for the adjuvant treatment of recurrent or progressive gliomas. Seven patients with proven GD2 expression in surgical specimens underwent a vaccination course with GD2-KLH/MPL-A conjugate. The follow-up was performed according to WHO guidelines regarding common toxicity criteria. Antibody titres against the ganglioside and the adjuvants were analysed. All patients developed a local type 4 reaction. Anti-GD2-antibody titres could not be detected, despite high titres against the immunoadjuvants. No tumour regression was observed. The disease remained stable for a median of 21.5 weeks (6-34 weeks). The median survival time after the first immunization was 47 weeks. The medial total survival time was 76 weeks. Adverse effects have not been observed. Active GD2-KLH/MPL-A immunization was technically feasible, but did not elicit anti-GD2 antibody generation.

BACKGROUND Craniotomy with a mechanical twist drill is a standard, minimally invasive procedure in neurosurgery, widely used for the drainage of chronic subdural hematomas and the placement of ventricular drains. Nevertheless, the use of a standard twist drill trephine bears the risk of causing cerebral lesions. METHOD A commercially available mechanical twist drill system has been modified by a special self-controlling drill and a pre-adjustable distance holder that limits intracerebral penetration. After initial cadaver testing, the modified trephine has been used for 65 trephinations in patients (37 chronic subdural hematomas, 21 external ventricular drains, 6 frontal hygromas, 1 tumor cyst). RESULTS There were no complications related to the modified trephine; cerebral lesions caused by drilling too deeply or by uncontrolled penetration were safely prevented. In our series no procedure related infections occurred, and the drilling time was reduced significantly. CONCLUSION The described modified mechanical twist drill enables fast, easy, and safe craniotomy without jeopardizing the advantages of a mechanical twist drill. Therefore, it can be recommended particularly for difficult emergency conditions.

During the 10th meeting of the WSSFN in Maebashi in 1989, we discussed 'endoscopic stereotaxy', and presented our preliminary results. This technique was first designed to optimize stereotactic biopsy, but it proved to be effective for other neurosurgical indications as well, including endoscopic stereotactic evacuation of intraparenchymal and intraventricular space-occupying cysts, endoscopic stereotactic cystoventriculostomy, third ventriculostomy, evacuation of brain abscess and intracerebral hematoma, and retrieval of adherent or free-floating ventricular catheters. Our results with endoscopic stereotaxy in different indications are encouraging, compared to conventional microsurgical techniques and pure stereotactic techniques. From 1989 to 1997 we have performed more than 400 stereotactic endoscopic procedures. The mortality rate is below 1%, the operative morbidity is below 3%.

The surgical aim in the treatment of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis is the relief of the patient's complaints by an adequate neural decompression. Unilateral laminotomy and bilateral spinal canal decompression represents such a safe, effective and minimally invasive surgical method. This technique has been successfully used in the operative treatment of 29 patients with symptomatic mono- or multisegmental lumbar stenosis. There was no surgically induced neurological deterioration. In one patient, an inadvertent dural tear occurred, and due to unchanged symptoms another patient with a multisegmental stenosis had to be re-operated on at an additional level. Postoperatively, 25 of the 27 patients with neurogenic claudication (93%) demonstrated a marked improvement of the walking distance. The follow-up of 25 patients (mean follow-up time was 18 months) demonstrated an excellent result without pain in 7 patients (28%); a good outcome with mild residual pain, but a normal working capacity in 15 patients (60%); and a fair outcome with unchanged postoperative low-back pain but markedly improved working capacity and walking distance in 3 patients (12%). Postoperative morphometric evaluation as well as the clinical improvement of the patient's symptoms clearly demonstrated that bilateral ligamentectomy and recess decompression were adequately and successfully achieved via unilateral approach.

Hemangioblastomas of the spinal cord and the brainstem make up 4% of all spinal tumors and are less common than cerebellar hemangioblastomas. CT and MRI are essential for preoperative diagnosis. Nevertheless, cerebral and spinal angiography are also mandatory, since they allow a detailed study of the vascular situation, which is decisive for exact planning of a surgical strategy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic and therapeutic factors which influence surgical morbidity and postoperative outcome. Twelve patients harbouring spinal(8 cases) or medullary (4 cases) hemangioblastomas, all symptomatic with sensorimotor deficits corresponding to the level of the lesion were evaluated. All patients were treated in our department between December 1989 and September 1994. Complete resection of the lesion was achieved in each case. Postoperatively, none of the patients showed deterioration. Nine patients had immediate postoperative improvement of neurological signs and symptoms; in three patients the initial neurological deficits remained unchanged during the in-patient period. Late postoperative outcome demonstrated a clear improvement; in only one patient was there no change of the clinical signs, while in the other 11 patients a significant improvement of pre-existing neurological deficits was experienced. We conclude that microsurgical resection of spinal and medullary hemangioblastomas with low morbidity is feasible.

The glucose metabolism of 62 meningiomas was measured by fluorine -18-2-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET and correlated with proliferation rate (Ki-67 index) and tumor cellularity. The mean metabolic rate (MRG1u) for meningiomas was 0.26 ± 0.13 mikromol/g/min (range 0.08–0.62 mikromol/g/min).

The authors report their experiences gained from 19 patients with ventral or ventrolateral foramen magnum meningiomas operated on via the dorsolateral, suboccipital transcondylar access route. It is emphasized that the microsurgical management of these lesions includes two important aspects which increase the safety of the procedure: a meticulous preoperative planning based on the micro-anatomical details of each patient, as well as an individualized tailoring of the surgical approach. There were no deaths, and, in the past 5 years, no neurological complications in this series. Gross total removal of the tumour was achieved in each case. It is concluded that microsurgical removal of ventral or ventrolateral foramen magnum meningiomas with this technique constitutes a safe and recommendable procedure.

Selection of the approach and technique for surgical repair of aneurysm of the vertebrobasilar artery system is mainly based on angiographic features. This report emphasizes that planning the surgical procedure should also include preoperative evaluation of the individual skull base configuration, as well as the relationship between aneurysm site and surrounding bony structures. These features are evaluated on thin slice CT scans using bone tissue algorithms and are particularly important for adequate exposure of distal vertebral artery (VA) or midline aneurysms, because these cases require drilling of the jugular tubercle. For the use of lateral approaches, the surgeon must be familiar with the extradural and intradural anatomy of the foramen magnum region and may rely on at least five anatomical landmarks for orientation during surgery: 1) the dural entrance of the vertebral artery; 2) the posterior condylar emissary vein; 3) the medial rim of the distal sigmoid sinus; 4) the hypoglossal canal; 5) the jugular tubercle. To increase the safety of the procedure, the authors recommend an individualized tailoring of the surgical approach according to the variable morphological situation of each patient.

Nine consecutive cases of surgically treated spinal cavernous angiomas are presented. Our series consists of 6 men and 3 women with the following intramedullary spinal location of the cavernomas: 4 cervical, 4 thoracic and 1 thoraco-lumbar. All 9 patients were symptomatic with signs of myelopathy and senorimotor deficits corresponding to the level of the lesion. Six patients underwent laminectomy and in three patients a hemilaminectomy was performed to approach the lesion. A complete resection of the cavernoma was achieved in each case. Five patients showed transient neurological deterioration, in three cases the neurological status remained unchanged, and one patient experienced a slight improvement of symptoms during the early postoperative period. At follow-up examination (mean 14 months postoperative), a clear improvement of the clinical signs was demonstrable in 6 patients, and a complete resolution of the pre-existing symptoms and signs was achieved in two individuals. In one case the clinical state remained unchanged. It is concluded that microsurgical resection is the treatment of choice in cavernomas of the spinal cord.

In a series of 10 patients with stereotactically treated basal ganglia haematoma rtPA was used to dissolve remaining clots. Pre-operative haematoma volume ranged between 39 and 111 cm3 (average 56 cm3). Stereotactic aspiration alone yielded an average volume reduction of 60% (range 23 to 78%). Haematoma cavity was instillated with rtPA repeatedly beginning 24 hours after the stereotactic intervention. At the end of rtPA therapy between 2 and 4 days after onset of the haemorrhage 67 to 92% (average 84%) of the initial haematoma was removed in all patients. More than 80% of the pre-operative clot could be removed in 8 out of 10 patients between day 2 and 4. There were no signs of rtPA related toxicity. At the end of the follow-up period (between 4 and 17 months--mean 8 months) 6 patients were awake, oriented and with a residual hemiparesis able to live in their familiar environment. It is concluded that local rtPA instillation is an effective additional treatment to further resolution of deep seated intracerebral haematomas after stereotactic aspiration.

Surgical wound infections are still serious and sometimes fatal complications in neurosurgery [2, 4, 5, 9, 11, 17, 18, 21, 23]. Several investigations have, however, demonstrated a decrease in the rate of infection using perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis [3, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 19, 22]. The conception of modern mieroneurosurgery that minimization of the operative trauma contributes to improvement in the postoperative outcome as well as psychological and cosmetic aspects leads to a minimization of hair removal [20]. In the context of these improvements this study evaluated the rate of infection by using a standardized method with minimal partial hair removal in the incision line [16], antiseptic hair gel, and perioperative antibiotics in 716 craniotomies.

The rarity of syringomyelia, the difficulties in diagnosing the disease that were common prior to the era of computerized tomographic scanning and magnetic resonance imaging, and the lack of precise knowledge about the mechanism of fluid accumulation within the spinal cord have led to a diversity of surgical methods for treating this congenital disease.

Continuous intrathecal baclofen infusion (CIBI) is a widely accepted therapy for the treatment of severe spinal spasticity. There is increasing evidence that CIBI has similar effects on patients with supraspinal spasticity resulting from either hypoxic or traumatic brain injury.1 A proportion of patients with supraspinal spasticity present with additional autonomic dysfunction. These dysfunctions are often unresponsive to conventional antiadrenergic medication. Patients may present with severe arterial hypertension, tachycardia, hyperhidrosis, hypersalivation, and bronchial hypersecretion. Mortality is mainly influenced by these symptoms. In addition to antiadrenergic medication sedatives and analgesics are often required. During intensive care treatment such medication often leads to a prolongation of artificial ventilation and delayed rehabilitation. During rehabilitation autonomic instability additionally interferes with physiotherapeutic activity. In the follow up of patients with severe supraspinal spasticity we noted the positive influence of intrathecal baclofen infusion on autonomic instability.1 Study of the literature did not disclose similar findings. So far, it had not yet been pointed out that CIBI has a positive influence on symptoms originating from severe hypoxic or traumatic brain damage. Eighteen patients with severe tetraspasticity from either hypoxic or traumatic brain injury were …

The complications of anterior discectomy without fusion were analyzed on the basis of 450 consecutive cases treated surgically for degenerative disc disease. There was no death related to the procedure. The most common complication was a worsening of the pre-existing myelopathy. This occurred in 3.3%, including one case with severe medullary contusion. Wound infection developed in 1.6%. Additional radicular symptoms and wound haematoma, respectively, occurred in 1.3%; recurrent nerve palsy, Horner's syndrome, and respiratory insufficiency, respectively, in 1.1% of the cases. Epidural haematoma and instability of the cervical spine, respectively, occurred in 0.9%, nerve root lesion and aseptic spondylodiscitis, respectively, in 0.4%. There was one case each (0.2%) with a pharyngeal lesion, meningitis due to dural perforation, transient additional myelopathy, and epidural abscess. The results and the management of complications are discussed in relation to numerous previously published reports, including posterior procedures and anterior fusion techniques. Precise knowledge of all potential accidents and pitfalls related to the surgical procedure and of their aetiology may contribute to preventing failures. The rate of complications in this series has been reduced in the past years by better patient selection, by paying more attention to correct positioning of the patient during the operation, and by meticulous removal of all offending structures. Discectomy without interbody fusion is now considered to be a reasonably safe procedure with an acceptable operative morbidity and lack of mortality.

Several operative procedures for treatment of degenerative disc disease are currently available. A review of the pertinent literature reveals that apart from a few differences, the operative results are equivalent.

Tumors confined to the cavernous sinus and Meckel’s cave are of different entities and can have a varied clinical presentation [1]. The most common tumors in this area are meningiomas and neurinomas. The exact location and relation to surrounding structures can be sufficiently determined by computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Various techniques and approaches for the surgical removal of such space-occupying lesions have been presented and described by a number of authors [4,9,10,12].

MRI has become the most sensitive and accurate imaging technique in patients with spinal diseases. Absence of beam hardening artifacts and a high intrinsic tissue contrast permit a reliable and noninvasive demonstration and diagnosis of tumors involving the craniocervical junction (Epstein and Wisoff 1987, Friedburg et al. 1986).