Search

The Endoscopic Endonasal Far-Medial approach represents the coronal expansion of the conventional endoscopic endonasal approach to the lower third of the clivus, which allows access to the condylar region and adjacent structures such as the jugular foramen, jugular tubercle, and the craniocervical junction.

Anterior skull base meningiomas are a diverse group of tumors that involve different locations. The role of the expanded endoscopic transnasal approach in the management of anterior cranial fossa meningiomas has significantly changed over the past 2 decades. Patient selection is paramount to benefit from the advantages of endoscopic transnasal surgery such as direct access to ventral skull base lesions avoiding brain and brainstem retraction, early de-vascularization, removal of bone infiltrated by tumor, near-field magnification, better surgical field illumination, and minimal manipulation of neurovascular structures. Here we discuss some of the main limitations and advantages of the endoscopic transnasal approach related to patient selection, including nuances of their management, discussing preoperative imaging and planning, the surgical approach, and future perspectives in the treatment of these tumors.

Anterior skull base meningiomas are a diverse group of tumors that involve different locations. The role of the expanded endoscopic transnasal approach in the management of anterior cranial fossa meningiomas has significantly changed over the past 2 decades. Patient selection is paramount to benefit from the advantages of endoscopic transnasal surgery such as direct access to ventral skull base lesions avoiding brain and brainstem retraction, early de-vascularization, removal of bone infiltrated by tumor, near-field magnification, better surgical field illumination, and minimal manipulation of neurovascular structures. Here we discuss some of the main limitations and advantages of the endoscopic transnasal approach related to patient selection, including nuances of their management, discussing preoperative imaging and planning, the surgical approach, and future perspectives in the treatment of these tumors.

Pituitary apoplexy (PA) is an acute event related to abrupt degeneration of a pituitary adenoma. Typically the tumor infarcts and undergoes hemorrhage. The authors believe that PA occurs due to venous infarction of an adenoma and as such, there is a variable volume of hemorrhage within the tumor. Patients commonly present with hypopituitarism, sudden symptoms of subarachnoid hemorrhage, and cranial neuropathy. Cranial nerve palsies vary depending on the degree of mass effect on the cranial nerves traversing the cavernous sinus, suprasellar cistern and the parasellar region. This condition is a medical emergency and correcting pituitary dysfunction is paramount. The most critical consideration to stabilizing patients with apoplexy is related to cardiovascular collapse due to hypocortisolism. Resuscitation with stress dose steroids is essential in the management of these select patients in an emergency department setting. Once these patients have been hemodynamically stabilized, they most often proceed with transsphenoidal surgery, which is meant to rapidly decompress neural structures causing visual disturbance, ophthalmoplegia, or brain compression. Conservative management can be chosen in patients with major comorbidities and/or minimal symptoms related to mass effect.

Extranodal NK/T cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTL-NT) is an aggressive extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma most commonly occurring in East Asia and Latin America but with increasing incidence in the United States. Data on epidemiology, disease presentation, and outcome for European and North American (“Western”) cases are very limited. We review published landmark clinical studies on ENKTL-NT in the West and report in detail recent data, including our institutional experience. We highlight key observations in its epidemiology, natural history, and trends in clinical management. In the USA, ENKTL-NT is more common among Asian Pacific Islanders (API) and Hispanics compared to non-Hispanic whites. Published studies indicate less heterogeneity in clinical presentation in Western ENKTL-NT compared to Asian patients. While there is variation in age at diagnosis, presence of antecedent lymphoproliferative disorders, and outcomes among racial/ethnic groups, the universal association of ENKTL-NT with EBV and the poor response of this neoplasm to anthracycline-based therapy is consistent across all geographic areas. Data on epidemiology, disease presentation, and clinical outcomes in mature T cell and NK cell (T/NK cell) neoplasms, including ENKTL-NT, in Europe and North America are very limited. As the classification and diagnostic characterization of the currently recognized T/NK cell lymphoma disease entities continue to evolve, gaps and inconsistencies in data reporting across different studies are being recognized. Despite these limitations, several studies from the USA suggest that the incidence of ENKTL-NT is higher in Asian Pacific Islanders (API) and non-white Hispanics and that outcomes may be worse in non-whites. However, the universal association of ENKTL-NT with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) across all ethnic groups suggests a common pathogenesis. Given the overlap between the entities included in the category of T/NK cell neoplasms, there is a need to further define biological and clinical differences that may affect diagnosis, treatment, and outcome.

Background: Surgical treatment of pituitary pathologies has evolved along the years, adding safety and decreasing morbidity related to the procedure. Advances in the field of radiology, coupled with stereotactic technology and computer modeling, have culminated in the contemporary and widespread use of image guidance systems, as we know them today. Image guidance navigation has become a frequently used technology that provides continuous three-dimensional information for the accurate performance of neurosurgical procedures. We present a discussion about the application of image guidance in pituitary surgeries. Methods: Major indications for image guidance neuronavigation application in pituitary surgery are presented and demonstrated with illustrative cases. Limitations of this technology are also presented. Results: Patients presenting a history of previous transsphenoidal surgeries, anatomical variances of the sphenoid sinus, tumors with a close relation to the internal carotid arteries, and extrasellar tumors are the most important indications for image guidance in pituitary surgeries. The high cost of the equipment, increased time of surgery due to setup time, and registration and the need of specific training for the operating room personnel could be pointed as limitations of this technology. Conclusion: Intraoperative image guidance systems provide real-time images, increasing surgical accuracy and enabling safe, minimally invasive interventions. However, the use of intraoperative navigation is not a replacement for surgical experience and a systematic knowledge of regional anatomy. It must be recognized as a tool by which the neurosurgeon can reduce the risk associated with surgical approach and treatment of pituitary pathologies.

Background and Methods:Reconstruction with a vascularised flap provides the most reliable outcome, with post-operative cerebrospinal fluid leak rates of less than 5 per cent. This article aims to review and summarise the critical technical aspects of the vascularised flaps most commonly used for skull base reconstruction.Results:Vascularised flaps are classified as intranasal or extranasal. The intranasal group includes the Hadad–Bassagaisteguy nasoseptal flap, the Caicedo reverse nasoseptal flap, the nasoseptal rescue flap, the posteriorly or anteriorly based lateral wall flaps, and the middle turbinate flap. Extranasal flaps include the transfrontal pericranial and transpterygoid temporoparietal flaps.Conclusion:The Hadad–Bassagaisteguy nasoseptal flap is overwhelmingly favoured for reconstructing extensive defects of anterior, middle and posterior cranial base. Its pertinent technical features are described. However, it is essential to master the skills required for the various extranasal or regional vascularised flaps because each can offer a reconstructive alternative for specific patients, especially when open approaches are needed and/or intranasal vascularised flaps are not feasible.

Purpose of review Clival chordomas are rare malignant tumors associated with a poor prognosis. In this article, we review the current literature to identify a variety of strategies that provide guidelines toward the optimal management for this aggressive tumor. Recent findings Molecular disease, particularly, the development of characterized chordoma cell lines, has become one of the new cornerstones for the histological diagnosis of chordomas and for the development of effective chemotherapeutic agents against this tumor. Brachyury, a transcription factor in notochord development, seems to provide an excellent diagnostic marker for chordoma and may also prove to be a valuable target for chordoma therapy. Aggressive cytoreductive surgery aiming for gross total resection with maintenance of key neurovascular structures, followed by proton beam or hadron radiation, provides the best local recurrence and overall survival rates. Summary Clival chordomas are locally aggressive tumors that are challenging to treat because of their unique biology, proximity to key neurovascular structures and poor prognosis. Currently, chordomas are optimally managed with aggressive surgery, whilst preserving key structures, and postoperative radiation in a multidisciplinary setting with an experienced team. The advancement of molecular techniques offers exciting future diagnostic and therapeutic options in the management of chordomas.

Findings 19 500 households were visited. The national crude mortality rate of 2·1 deaths per 1000 per month (95% CI 1·6–2·6) was 40% higher than the sub-Saharan regional level (1·5), corresponding to 600 000 more deaths than would be expected during the recall period and 38 000 excess deaths per month. Total death toll from the conflict (1998–2004) was estimated to be 3·9 million. Mortality rate was higher in unstable eastern provinces, showing the effect of insecurity. Most deaths were from easily preventable and treatable illnesses rather than violence. Regression analysis suggested that if the effects of violence were removed, all-cause mortality could fall to almost normal rates. Interpretation The conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo remains the world’s deadliest humanitarian crisis. To save lives, improvements in security and increased humanitarian assistance are urgently needed.

Pituitary adenomas are often encased in a histological pseudocapsule that separates the tumor from the normal gland. Transsphenoidal adenoma resection may be performed either in an intra- or an extracapsular technique. The extracapsular fashion offers anatomical orientation, removal of a security margin, reduced risk of opening the arachnoid layer with subsequent CSF flow and identification of invasion.The sella turcica is approached through the classic endoscopic endonasal route. After opening the dura of the sellar floor, the interface between the compressed tissue and the normal gland is used as a surgical plane for dissection. Performing slight counter-traction with the suction tube, the cleavage plane is identified and stepwise unsealed in an atraumatic fashion with the cotton swab. Once the cleavage plane is partially loosened, repeated twisting movements are performed with the cotton swab to enucleate the pseudocapsule and adenoma.Both micro- and macroadenomas presenting a pseudocapsule may be resected in the extracapsular dissection technique with the cotton swab. Operating in an endoscopic three- to four hands technique enables to visualize the anatomic planes and perform twisting movements with the cotton swab separating pseudocapsule and tumor in order to enucleate the adenoma.

Subtipe HIV-1 dapat ditentukan dengan melakukan analisis sekuens nukleotida dari gen selubung luar HIV-1, dengan mengekstrak DNA proviral dari sampel pasien, dan memakainya dalam PCR khusus untuk envelope HIV-1. Kemudian ini di sekuens dan dianalisis dengan memakai rujukan sekuens dari bank gen LANL (Los Alamos National Library) untuk menentukan subtipe. Distribusi geografi subtipe HIV-1 bersifat dinamis. Sampai sekarang terdapat 9 subtipe HIV dan 34 circulating recombinant forms (CRFs). Penelitian terdahulu mendapatkan ada dua subtipe HIV-1 yang beredar di Indonesia, Subtipe B dan CRF01_AE. Dengan mengetahui subtipe HIV-1 dapat membantu penelusuran arah epidemi dan memberikan informasi untuk merencanakan pencegahan HIV demikian juga memberikan informasi yang diperlukan dalam pembuatan vaksin. Oleh karena itu sangat penting dilakukan penelitian mengenai subtipe HIV di Indonesia.Rancangan penelitian adalah cross-sectional analytic yang dilakukan di Klinik Pelayanan AIDS di Denpasar, Bali dan Panti Rehabilitasi Narkoba di Bogor, Jawa Barat. Responden adalah odha dewasa yang memenuhi kriteria inklusi (odha dewasa dan bersedia ikut dalam penelitian) dan responden dipilih secara non probability sampling sampai memenuhi jumlah sampel yang dibutuhkan. Dengan memakai rumus 16.4 Sastroasmoro S. and Ismael S. (2002), jumlah sampel minimal dihitung sebesar 65. Untuk hipotesis 1, melihat perbedaan Subtipe HIV-1 dengan cara transmisi virus, analisis data menggunakan uji statistik Chi-Square. Untuk hipotesis 2, membandingkan Subtipe HIV-1 dengan derajat penyakit, analisis data menggunakan uji statistik Fisher’s Exact test, sedangkan untuk analisis data epidemiologi kasus dikerjakan secara deskriptif. Hasil disajikan dalam bentuk tabel, gambar pohon phylogenetic dan narasi.Dari penelitian ini didapatkan empat jenis subtipe di Indonesia, yaitu Subtipe B, CRF01_AE, C dan G (A/G). Semua pengguna narkotika suntik (penasun) terinfeksi oleh Subtipe CRF01_AE, dan hubungan ini terbukti secara statistic bermakna (Chi-square test with continuity correction value 7,951 p = 0,005) (Tabel 5.3.1). Subtipe HIV-1 tidak berhubungan secara bermakna dengan derajat penyakit, akan tetapi terdapat kecenderungan CRF01_AE mempunyai lebih banyak kasus dengan derajat penyakit berat dibandingkan dengan NonCRF01_AE. Prevalensi kasus dengan performance yang terganggu pada CRF01_AE adalah 30,3% sedangkan pada Non CRF01_AE 14,3%. Perbedaan ini secara statistic tidak bermakna (Fisher’s-Exact test p = 0,3445 (Tabel 5.11). Dari analisis Phylogenetic didapatkan bahwa transmisi HIV pada populasi risiko tinggi di Indonesia bersifat dinamis, dan epidemi yang terjadi tidak terpisah diantara populasi dengan faktor risiko yang berbeda.Kesimpulan dari penelitian adalah: CRF01_AE merupakan subtipe yang paling banyak didapatkan dan tersebar disebagian besar wilayah. CRF01_AE didapatkan pada populasi penasun, heteroseksual, penjaja seks komersial dan pelanggannya. Karena prevalensi HIV pada penasun sangat tinggi, baik di Bali maupun daerah lainnya di Indonesia (50%), maka ada kemungkinan penasun merupakan episentrum epidemi HIV di Bali dan beberapa daerah di Indonesia, yang akan menyebar ke populasi umum melalui kelompok heteroseksual risiko tinggi yaitu PSK dan pelanggannya. Sedangkan Subtipe B, C dan G (AG) terdapat baik pada homoseks dan heteroseks, namun tidak ada penasun. Data tersebut didukung oleh gambaran pohon phylogenetic (Gambar 5.3). Pemakaian DBS dalam penelitian ini cukup praktis dan aman, walaupun keberhasilannya masih rendah (44,9%). Sekarang sudah ada kertas saring yang lebih baik dan sesuai untuk dipakai pada penelitian yang akan datang.Saran dari penelitian ini adalah, dalam program harm reduction bagi penasun hendaknya juga menekankan pemakaian kondom secara konsisten dengan pasangan seksualnya. Disamping itu disarankan perlunya melakukan pemeriksaan subtipe HIV secara periodik karena distribusi subtipe HIV bersifat dinamis.

In April-May 2001, a study was conducted to determine the prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis E virus (HEV) among 426 persons 8-49 years of age randomly selected from two groups of rural villages in central Tibet. Group 1 villages were assessed in 1998 as having poor quality water sources; new water systems were then constructed prior to this study. Group 2 villages had higher quality water and were not designated as priority villages for new systems prior to the study. No participants tested positive for IgM; only IgG was detected in the analyzed samples. Overall, 31% of the participants had ever been infected with HEV (95% confidence interval [CI] = 26.7-35.7%). The rate was higher in men (36.6%) than women (26.3%) and highest in those 30-39 years of age (49.1%). The rate of past infection was higher in group 1; the risk ratio was 2.77 (95% CI = 1.98-3.88). This difference is most likely the result of the poor quality of the original water sources in these villages. In resource-poor countries, HEV may be a useful health indicator reflecting the degree of contamination in village water sources. This may be especially important in rural areas (such as Tibet) where maternal mortality ratios are high because HEV may be an important cause of deaths during pregnancy in disease-endemic areas.

Background and Goal: Notifications of HIV infection in Indonesia are increasing but there are few data on other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) especially in the eastern islands of Indonesia. We aimed to measure the prevalence of STIs among female sex workers (FSWs) in Kupang West Timor and to develop screening algorithms to detect cervical infections with Neisseria gonorrhoeae and/or Chlamydia trachomatis (NG/CT). Study Design: During 6 months in 1999 we recruited all the FSWs at Kupang’s only brothel complex and a smaller number of independent FSWs. The women were examined at dedicated clinics and most laboratory tests were performed at provincial laboratories. Algorithms based on the strongest associations of variables with NG/CT were compared with the laboratory diagnoses. Results: We recruited 288 women. The prevalence of N gonorrhoeae infection was 31% that of C trachomatis infection was 24% that of Trichomonas vaginalis infection was 5% and that of syphilis was 13%. No case of HIV infection was detected. Few women had symptoms of STI. The only variables significantly associated with NG/CT after logistic regression analysis were the presence of cervical discharge (either yellow or clear) and a high count of polymorphonuclear leukocytes on gram-stained endocervical smear. Several algorithms to screen for NG/CT achieved high (>80%) sensitivity but the highest specificity among these was only 50%. Conclusions: Although several of the generated algorithms may be useful in the absence of simple accurate affordable diagnostic tests the high rates of STIs in this population could justify a more aggressive strategy incorporating periodic presumptive treatment to rapidly reduce prevalence. (authors)

Background: The HIV epidemic in Indonesia remains concentrated in vulnerable populations, namely injecting drug users (IDUs), commercial sex workers (CSWs) and men who have sex with men (MSM). We aimed to determine the HIV-1 subtypes present in Indonesia and to establish the extent of the viral overlap between individuals with different risk factors. Methods: Venous blood samples were collected from HIV-positive individuals primarily from sexually transmissible infection clinics and drug rehabilitation centres in Bali and Jakarta, and applied to filter paper. A polymerase chain reaction-based assay designed to amplify a 330-bp region of the HIV-1 envelope was used to determine HIV-1 subtype result and to perform phylogenetic analysis. Results: Of the 175 individuals recruited to the study, a subtype result was obtained for 108 (62%). Four subtypes were found to exist in the population, CRF01_AE (n = 96, 88.9%), B (n = 10, 9.3%), C (n = 1, 0.9%) and G (n = 1, 0.9%). Of these 108 individuals, 65 (60%) were IDUs, and the remaining 40% were CSWs, MSM, transgender individuals, people with multiple sexual partners or those with no obvious risk factor. CRF01_AE was found to be more common among IDUs with 100% of individuals infected with this subtype. Subtype B was more common among MSM and CSWs (P =