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Purpose The aim of our retrospective study is to analyze how spinopelvic dissociations (SPDs) were treated in a single center trying to better understand how to improve surgical and non-surgical options. Methods Twenty patients of a single center surgically treated for SPDs between 2013 and 2021 were retrospectively included in this study. Three surgical techniques have been used: modified triangular stabilization, triangular stabilization and double iliac screws stabilization. Follow-up was assessed for up to 11.6 ± 9.9 months through ODI, MRS, NRS, IIEF or FSFI, a CT scan and whole spine X-ray examination. Results Twenty patients were admitted to our ER for traumatic spinopelvic dissociation. Surgical treatment for spinopelvic dissociation has been performed on average 11.5 ± 6.7 days after the trauma event. Eighteen fractures were C3 type and two C2 types. Neurological examination showed nerve root injury (N2) in 5 patients, incomplete spinal cord injury (N3) in 4 patients and cauda equina syndrome in two patients (N4). In case of neurologic deficits, routinary nerve decompression was performed. Three different surgical techniques have been used: 8 triangular fixations (Group 1), 6 modified triangular stabilization (Group 2) and 6 double iliac screws triangular fixation (Group 3). Conclusion In patients with post-traumatic neurological deficit, decompression surgery and fracture reduction seem to be associated with clinical improvement; however, sexual disorders seem to be less responsive to the treatment. Some open stabilization techniques, such as the double iliac screw, could help in restoring the sagittal balance in case of severe deformities.

Purpose The aim of this study is to compare the use of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and sodium fluorescein (SF) in IV ventricular ependymoma (IVEP) surgical resection. Methods In this retrospective study, six patients with IVEP were enrolled. Gender ratio 2:1 male to female, with mean age 38.9 years old. A 5-ALA oral dose of 20 mg/kg and a SF intravenous dose of 2 mg/kg were administered. Telo-velar approach, operative microscope, and intraoperative monitoring were used in all the operations. We retrospectively compared the two fluorescence techniques at four steps during the surgical procedure: step 1: exposure of the tumor; step 2: dissection of the lesion from the cerebellum; step 3: assessment of the tumor borders and differentiation from normal tissue at the base of implants; and step 4: evaluation of possible residual tissue in the surgical cavity. Results At the first step, the ependymomas resulted well delineated by both fluorescent agents. In this step, 5-ALA was particularly helpful in the case of recurrent ependymoma. At step 2, 5-ALA provided a better identification of the ependymoma boundaries and distinction from cerebellum hemispheres than SF. In steps 3 and 4, SF was really helpful to detect tumor tissue. Conclusion According to our experience, fluorescence-guided surgery of IVEP with 5-ALA and SF is useful to maximize surgical resection with less risk of brainstem injury. Both fluorescence techniques are helpful in different steps of IVEP resection. However, further studies are needed to confirm our preliminary data.

The aim of our retrospective study is to analyze how spinopelvic dissociations (SPDs) were treated in a single center trying to better understand how to improve surgical and non-surgical options.Twenty patients of a single center surgically treated for SPDs between 2013 and 2021 were retrospectively included in this study. Three surgical techniques have been used: modified triangular stabilization, triangular stabilization and double iliac screws stabilization. Follow-up was assessed for up to 11.6 ± 9.9 months through ODI, MRS, NRS, IIEF or FSFI, a CT scan and whole spine X-ray examination.Twenty patients were admitted to our ER for traumatic spinopelvic dissociation. Surgical treatment for spinopelvic dissociation has been performed on average 11.5 ± 6.7 days after the trauma event. Eighteen fractures were C3 type and two C2 types. Neurological examination showed nerve root injury (N2) in 5 patients, incomplete spinal cord injury (N3) in 4 patients and cauda equina syndrome in two patients (N4). In case of neurologic deficits, routinary nerve decompression was performed. Three different surgical techniques have been used: 8 triangular fixations (Group 1), 6 modified triangular stabilization (Group 2) and 6 double iliac screws triangular fixation (Group 3).In patients with post-traumatic neurological deficit, decompression surgery and fracture reduction seem to be associated with clinical improvement; however, sexual disorders seem to be less responsive to the treatment. Some open stabilization techniques, such as the double iliac screw, could help in restoring the sagittal balance in case of severe deformities.

Radiomics defines a set of techniques for extraction and quantification of digital medical data in an automated and reproducible way. Its goal is to detect features potentially related to a clinical task, like classification, diagnosis, prognosis, and response to treatment, going beyond the intrinsic limits of operator-dependency and qualitative description of conventional radiological evaluation on a mesoscopic scale. In the field of neuro-oncology, researchers have tried to create prognostic models for a better tumor diagnosis, histological and biomolecular classification, prediction of response to treatment, and identification of disease relapse. Concerning glioma surgery, the most significant aid that radiomics can give to surgery is to improve tumor extension detection and identify areas that are more prone to recurrence to increase the extent of tumor resection, thereby ameliorating the patients' prognosis. This chapter aims to review the fundamentals of radiomics models' creation, the latest advance of radiomics in neuro-oncology, and possible radiomic features associated with the extent of resection in the brain gliomas.

Radiomics defines a set of techniques for extraction and quantification of digital medical data in an automated and reproducible way. Its goal is to detect features potentially related to a clinical task, like classification, diagnosis, prognosis, and response to treatment, going beyond the intrinsic limits of operator-dependency and qualitative description of conventional radiological evaluation on a mesoscopic scale. In the field of neuro-oncology, researchers have tried to create prognostic models for a better tumor diagnosis, histological and biomolecular classification, prediction of response to treatment, and identification of disease relapse. Concerning glioma surgery, the most significant aid that radiomics can give to surgery is to improve tumor extension detection and identify areas that are more prone to recurrence to increase the extent of tumor resection, thereby ameliorating the patients' prognosis. This chapter aims to review the fundamentals of radiomics models' creation, the latest advance of radiomics in neuro-oncology, and possible radiomic features associated with the extent of resection in the brain gliomas.

Background Shunt-dependent hydrocephalus significantly complicates subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and reliable prognosis methods have been sought in recent years to reduce morbidity and costs associated with delayed treatment or neglected onset. Machine learning (ML) defines modern data analysis techniques allowing accurate subject-based risk stratifications. We aimed at developing and testing different ML models to predict shunt-dependent hydrocephalus after aneurysmal SAH. Methods We consulted electronic records of patients with aneurysmal SAH treated at our institution between January 2013 and March 2019. We selected variables for the models according to the results of the previous works on this topic. We trained and tested four ML algorithms on three datasets: one containing binary variables, one considering variables associated with shunt-dependency after an explorative analysis, and one including all variables. For each model, we calculated AUROC, specificity, sensitivity, accuracy, PPV, and also, on the validation set, the NPV and the Matthews correlation coefficient (ϕ). Results Three hundred eighty-six patients were included. Fifty patients (12.9%) developed shunt-dependency after a mean follow-up of 19.7 (± 12.6) months. Complete information was retrieved for 32 variables, used to train the models. The best models were selected based on the performances on the validation set and were achieved with a distributed random forest model considering 21 variables, with a ϕ = 0.59, AUC = 0.88; sensitivity and specificity of 0.73 (C.I.: 0.39–0.94) and 0.92 (C.I.: 0.84–0.97), respectively; PPV = 0.59 (0.38–0.77); and NPV = 0.96 (0.90–0.98). Accuracy was 0.90 (0.82–0.95). Conclusions Machine learning prognostic models allow accurate predictions with a large number of variables and a more subject-oriented prognosis. We identified a single best distributed random forest model, with an excellent prognostic capacity (ϕ = 0.58), which could be especially helpful in identifying low-risk patients for shunt-dependency.

OBJECTIVEChanges in the pressure gradient between intraocular and intracranial compartments at the lamina cribrosa level are a possible explanation of normal tension glaucoma (NTG). Shunt-treated normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a model for testing whether the increase (time from disease onset to CSF shunt placement, i.e., “protection period”) and decrease (time from shunt placement to observation, i.e., “exposure period”) in intracranial pressure (ICP) are glaucoma protective or risk factors, respectively. The authors estimated the prevalence of NTG in patients with shunt-treated NPH and calculated the extent of optic nerve exposure to changes in the trans–lamina cribrosa gradient.METHODSData obtained in patients with NPH who had undergone ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt placement were analyzed. Patients with more than 6 months’ follow-up, no pathologies associated with ICP changes or CSF dynamics disturbances, and no surgical or valve-related complications were scheduled for ophthalmic evaluation.RESULTSNine of 22 patients had NTG, which is about a 40-fold increase in rate compared with the rate in the general elderly population without hydrocephalus (p < 0.001). The median protection period was 12.0 months in patients with NTG and 18.0 months in those without NTG (p = 0.033). The median ICP decrease multiplied by duration of exposure in months was 76.0 mm Hg × months in the NTG group and 24.1 mm Hg × months in the no-NTG group (p = 0.048). The patients’ median adjusted age (adjusted for “protection” and “exposure” times) was 85.1 years in the NTG group and 78.8 years in the no-NTG group (p = 0.001).CONCLUSIONSA crucial risk factor for development of NTG in patients with shunt-treated NPH is the duration of optic nerve exposure to the lowering of ICP. Patients with NPH who are candidates for CSF shunting should be informed of the risk of incurring glaucoma. Longitudinal studies could provide estimates of tolerated times for a given ICP decrease.