1/102. The treatment of immature heterotopic ossification in spinal cord injury with combination surgery, radiation therapy and NSAID.Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a frequent complication associated with spinal cord injury. Management of HO consists of a combination of range-of-motion, diphosphonates, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agents, radiation therapy, and in some cases, surgical resection. The appropriate timing of surgical resection has traditionally been based on maturity of the HO. The case presented is that of a 33-year-old male with T8 complete paraplegia who developed HO about the left hip resulting in impaired sitting. The patient underwent successful surgical wedge resection of the HO despite apparent immaturity of the HO. A comprehensive review of the literature is presented which suggests that early resection of immature HO may not be predictive of a higher recurrence rate.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/102. Spinal cord injury in a fetus.In her eighth month of pregnancy a woman was stabbed in the abdomen with a barbecue fork. Upon delivery one week later, the child was noted to have two scars in the thoracic region on the back. The legs were flaccid. Surgical exploration at the age of seven months revealed marked, dense scarring of spinal cord and arachnoid membrane. No similar case was found in the literature.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 7.3341171781192keywords = delivery (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/102. Surgical treatment of vascular lesions of the spinal cord.Paravertebral block and resection of upper thoracic sympathetic ganglions were performed on cases in which vascular disturbance of the spinal cord was considered partly responsible. Block was performed in 14 cases and clinical improvement was seen in 10 cases out of them while resection was considered effective in 2 out of 3 cases. The evoked EMG of patients was assumed recovery of a part of synaptic function in the ischemic cord after the block. On the other hand, the skin temperature of the lower extremity did not show considerable change and this supports the view that the restoration of clinical picture was not due to the improvement of the periphral circulation of extremities. From these observations, it would be well presumed that favorable effect of sympathectomy consists partly in the improvement of vascular disturbance of the spinal cord.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/102. Anaesthetic management of a woman who became paraplegic at 22 weeks' gestation after a spontaneous spinal cord haemorrhage secondary to a presumed arteriovenous malformation.A 19-yr-old woman developed a paraplegia with a T10 sensory level at 22 weeks' gestation. The spinal injury was caused by spontaneous bleed of a presumed arteriovenous malformation in the spinal cord. She presented for Caesarean section at term because of the breech position of her fetus. The successful use of a combined spinal epidural-regional anaesthetic is described and the risks of general and regional anaesthesia are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/102. The risk of paraplegia through medical treatment.In the Orthopedic University Hospital of Heidelberg (section orthopedics II, treatment and rehabilitation of paraplegics), 21 patients with iatrogenic paraplegia were treated between 1968 and 1991. paraplegia occurred in nine cases after procedures close to the spinal cord. In 12 cases paraplegia complicated medical treatment. Procedures close to the spinal cord, such as laminectomy, vertebrotomy, spondylodesis, and peridural anaesthesia, involve the risk of mechanical damage to the spinal cord, the level of paraplegia depends on the area of treatment. Any previous damage to the spinal cord increases the risk of paraplegic complications. The main risks in procedures distant from the spinal cord, such as vascular surgery, angiography, radiotherapy, bronchial artery embolisation, and umbilical artery injection, are disturbances of the blood supply or toxic mechanisms. The ischaemic genesis of spinal cord damage is obvious in the case of vessel ligatures or cross-clamping of the aorta with resulting hypotonic discirculation. In radiomyelopathy as well, the damage to the spinal vessels outweighs the direct neuronal damage. Corresponding to the vascular cause, lesions are more likely to occur at the level of borderlines of blood supply in the middle thoracic cord or in the area of a non-anastomosed great radicular artery in the lumbar spinal cord. knowledge of the consequences and side effects of medical treatment is imperative. Knowing about the risk of a paraplegic lesion, we need a strict indication for diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. Due to progress in science some of the reasons of iatrogenic paraplegia have become manageable. Especially in radiotherapy, vascular surgery and angiography the risk of neurological complications has been lowered.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/102. Spinal cord vascular injuries following surgery of advanced thoracic neuroblastoma: an unusual catastrophic complication.BACKGROUND: Spinal cord injury is a possible complication associated with removal of thoracic dumbbell neuroblastomas. Our experience with two children whose postsurgical course was complicated by midthoracic spinal cord ischemia is reported there. Permanent paraplegia resulted in both. PROCEDURE AND RESULTS: Preoperative awareness of the origin and distribution of the Adamkiewicz artery (arteria radiculomedullaris magna, ARMM) and of the possible collateral pathways for spinal cord blood supply may be helpful in the planning of operations that involve dissection in the midthoracic posterior mediastinum. Otherwise, a flaccid paraplegia may result. CONCLUSIONS: The syndrome is presumed to be triggered by a spasm, an embolism, or a iatrogenic interruption of the ARMM.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/102. autonomic dysreflexia presenting as a severe headache.hypertension, bradycardia, and severe headache have been associated with autonomic dysreflexia. autonomic dysreflexia affects those with spinal transection above the level of T6 after plastic changes of the afferent pathways. This restructuring in the presence of noxious stimuli below the level of the lesion leads to autonomic dysreflexia. The onset of the first episode of autonomic dysreflexia has been documented as soon as 30 days and as late as 13 years after the injury. This report presents a case study of a paraplegic man 8 years after injury with autonomic dysreflexia associated with a urinary tract infection.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/102. Symptoms of recurrent intrathecal baclofen withdrawal resulting from drug delivery failure: a case report.A 24-yr-old, completely (T8) paraplegic male patient presenting with severe spasticity had a drug administration device implanted in April 1991 for continuous intrathecal administration of baclofen. After a period of remarkable improvement in both the spasticity level and his quality of life, the patient experienced several short-lasting episodes of increased spasticity, with severe spasms. Among the possible causes of these deleterious episodes were microcrystalluria, obstipation, a decubitus ulcer, a foreign body in the buttocks, drug tolerance to baclofen, electromagnetic interference, and erroneous filling and programing of the pump. The catheter was the most common source of intrathecal baclofen withdrawal symptoms and had to be changed four times in 5 yr. Intrathecal baclofen administered through an implantable drug administration device is a highly effective but complex and expensive procedure that requires careful patient selection and close monitoring by highly qualified and well-trained health professional. Withdrawal symptoms may be related to noncompliance on the part of the patient, erroneous filling or programing of the pump, depletion of the battery, random component failure, concomitant illness, drug tolerance, or advancement of the disease itself. When failure of the device is suspected, substitution with oral baclofen is recommended until a full work-up is performed to determine the defect.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 29.336468712477keywords = delivery (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/102. Spinal angiolipoma: case report and review of literature.Spinal extradural angiolipomas are distinct, benign, and rare lesions composed of mature lipocytes admixed with abnormal blood vessels. They account for 0.14% of all spinal axis tumors. The case described here was a 72-year-old patient presenting with a history of paraparesis, hypoesthesia under the T2 level, hyperreflexia, and urinary overflow incontinence that appeared within 7 days after the administration of a coronary vasodilator drug regimen. The spinal magnetic resonance scan showed a lipomatous mass with signal void lesions, suggesting a vascular component of the tumor. The patient improved rapidly after surgical resection of the epidural tumor and decompression of the cord. According to the present literature, the duration of neurological symptoms ranges from 1 to 180 months (mean 28 months). But this patient's neurological deterioration took place 4 days before hospitalization. We believe that this can be explained by the increased tumor blood volume caused by vasodilator drugs, which in turn exerted a pulsatile compressive effect on the cord.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/102. A case of traumatic high thoracic myelopathy presenting dissociated impairment of rostral sympathetic innervations and isolated segmental sweating on otherwise anhidrotic trunk.A 3 year-old boy developed flaccid paraplegia, anesthesia below T3 and impaired vesical control immediately after a car accident. Three months later, the pupils and their pharmacological reactions were normal. Thermal sweating was markedly reduced on the right side of the face, neck, and shoulder and on the bilateral upper limbs, and was absent below T3 except for band like faint sweating on T7 sensory dermatome. The left side of the face, neck and shoulder showed compensatory hyperhidrosis. Facial skin temperature was higher on the sweating left side. Cervico-thoracic MRI suggested almost complete transection of the cord at the levels of T2 and T3 segments. We discussed the pathophysiology of the dissociated impairment of rostral sympathetic innervations and isolated segmental sweating on otherwise anhidrotic trunk.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.25keywords = section (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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