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Background: In India, in case of an allegation of assault, the medical officer is required to classify the nature of injury into simple, grievous, and dangerous based upon the Indian Penal Code, which is outdated and has numerous gray areas. Objective: The aim of this study is twofold: first, to formulate an objective scoring system for the medicolegal classification of head injuries and Second to validate the proposed scoring system on patients with head injury. Methods and Material: A panel of experts consisting of neurosurgeons, radiologists, and forensic specialists came up with an objective scoring system, coined as the RIGHT (radiological-intervention-Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)-based head trauma) scoring system consisting of three parameters, namely, the motor subscore of the GCS, computerized tomography image findings, and management of the patient. This was used to classify head injuries—into simple, grievous, and dangerous. A single-centre pilot study was planned—including patients with head trauma reporting to the emergency department. Medicolegal nature of the head injury was classified according to the proposed RIGHT score. A 6-month follow-up was performed using the Glasgow Outcome Score (GOS). Results: In total, 130 patients with head injury reported to the emergency department. There was a significant correlation between the RIGHT score assigned upon admission and the GOS at 6 months (P < 0.001). Conclusions: As the scoring system could be applied objectively and a significant correlation between nature of injury given by RIGHT score and 6-month outcome was present; therefore, the RIGHT scoring system proved to be an effective method in unambiguously classifying the nature of head injury for medicolegal opinions.

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Background: Most pregnant epilepsy patients need to continue using anti-seizure medications (ASMs) to control epileptic seizures. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the risk of early abortion in pregnant epilepsy patients exposed to anti-seizure monotherapy. Methods and Material: We prospectively followed up pregnant epilepsy patients treated with anti-seizure monotherapy in our epilepsy center between January 2010 and January 2020 under real-world conditions. Early abortion (spontaneous abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy) was the endpoint. Results: Of 211 pregnancies exposed to monotherapy, including 40% (n = 85) to lamotrigine (LTG), 28% (n = 58) to oxcarbazepine (OXC), 15% (n = 32) to sodium valproate (VPA), 9% (n = 19) to levetiracetam, and 8% (n = 17) to carbamazepine, six ended in early abortion. The overall risk of early abortion in pregnant patients exposed to ASM monotherapy was 2.8% (n = 6) [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.013–0.073]. The risk of early abortion was 2.4% (n = 2) (95% CI = 0.003–0.082) in women treated with LTG, 3.5% (n = 2) (95% CI = 0.004–0.115) in women treated with OXC, and 6.3% (n = 2) (95% CI = 0.008–0.208) in women treated with VPA. The relative risk of early abortion in the LTG, OXC, and VPA groups did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions: Although the sample size of our study was small, these results indicate that the use of anti-seizure monotherapy in pregnant epilepsy patients may not increase the risk of early miscarriage. Larger prospective studies are needed for sufficient statistical analysis.

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Background: Giant pituitary adenomas (GPA) pose a significant neurosurgical challenge. In this study, we present an experience of 60 consecutive patients with GPA operated by trans-sphenoidal surgery (microscopic/endoscopic). Objective: The aim of this study was to elucidate preoperative factors predicting extent of resection (EOR) following transsphenoidal surgery for GPA. Materials and Methods: The study was a retrospective evaluation of 60 adult patients (>18 years) with GPA operated over a decade. The patients were analyzed for their clinical presentation, EOR, radiology, visual outcome, endocrinological outcome, and complications. Results: The mean age of the cohort was 41.5 ± 13.3 years, mean tumor volume was 38.2 ± 19.1 cm³, and mean follow-up was 30.6 ± 21.7 months. Improvement in vision was seen in forty patients (66.7%), while another 16 (26.7%) had stable vision as prior to surgery. Duration of visual symptoms was found to be statistically significantly associated with postoperative improvement of vision (P = 0.001). Twenty-four patients (40.0%) underwent subtotal resection (STR), while the remaining 36 patients (60.0%) underwent either gross total or near-total resection. Factors associated with STR were retrosellar (P = 0.04), subfrontal (P = 0.02), Knosp 3,4 cavernous sinus extension (P = 0.03), and MRI T2 hypointensity (P = 0.02). During follow-up, eight patients (13.3%) had radiological evidence of growth of residual tumor. Conclusions: Most cases of GPA can be adequately handled by trans-sphenoidal surgery. The presence of retrosellar, subfrontal, cavernous sinus extensions, and T2 hypointensity should alert the surgeon for likelihood of STR, postoperative residual tumor hemorrhage and need for second-stage endonasal or transcranial surgery. However, utilization of extended endoscopic route has allowed good debulking of tumors having subfrontal and parasellar extensions, which was not possible previously using traditional microscopic transsphenoidal surgery.

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Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) rates (1–9%) remain high despite the widespread adoption of infection control bundles. Topical vancomycin has emerged as an effective strategy to reduce the rate of SSI in patients undergoing spinal surgery including instrumentation. However, its use and efficiency in cranial neurosurgery is not well established. The aim of this study is to study the efficacy of topical vancomycin in cranial neurosurgery. Methods: A systematic search was performed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Data regarding type of surgery, use of implants, the dose of vancomycin, technique of administration in each study, outcomes, rate of SSI, and the interval between surgery and SSI; possible complications related to antibiotic use were collected. Results: A total of 12 studies were included in the qualitative analysis with 3,446 patients. SSI developed in 1.6% of the patients in the vancomycin group as compared to 5.28% in the control group. The pooled risk ratio was 0.24 with 95% CI: 0.12–0.51 (P-value: <0.00001). The difference between the subgroups was significant (P-value: < 0.00001). The number needed to treat (NNT) was 27.2. The studies showed low heterogeneity with an I² of 24%. Meta-regression analysis showed that the number of patients in a study, duration of follow-up, and year of publication did not contribute significantly to effect size. Conclusion: The limited systemic absorption of vancomycin and broad-spectrum led to its widespread applicability in the prevention of SSI in all types of cranial neurosurgery. Cases with implantable pulse generators, cranioplasty, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) diversion procedures have all demonstrated their unequivocal effectiveness.

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Background: The delay in the referral of patients with potential surgical vertebral metastasis (VM) to the spine surgeon is strongly associated with a worse outcome. The spinal instability neoplastic score (SINS) allows for determining the risk of instability of a spine segment with VM; however, it is almost exclusively used by specialists or residents in neurosurgery or orthopedics. The objective of this work is to report the delay in surgical consultation of patients with potentially unstable and unstable VM (SINS >6) at our center. Material: We performed a 5-year single-center retrospective analysis of patients with spine metastasis on computed tomography (CT). Patients were divided into Group 1 (G1), potentially unstable VM (SINS 7-12), and Group 2 (G2), unstable VM (SINS 13-18). Time to surgical referral was calculated as the number of days between the report of the VM in the CT and the first clinical assessment of a spinal surgeon on the medical records. Results: We analyzed 220 CT scans, and 98 met the selection criteria. Group 1 had 85 patients (86.7%) and Group 2 had 13 (13.3%). We observed a mean time to referral of 83.5 days in the entire cohort (std = 127.6); 87.6 days (std = 135.1) for G1, and 57.2 days (std = 53.8) for G2. The delay in referral showed no significant correlation with the SINS score. Conclusion: We report a mean delay of 83.5 days in the surgical referral of VM (SINS >6, n = 98). Both groups showed cases of serious referral delay, with 25% of patients having the first surgical consultation more than three months after the CT study.

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Neurolymphomatosis (NL) is a rare clinical disease where neoplastic cells invade the cranial nerves, roots, plexus, or other peripheral nerves in patients with hematologic malignancy mainly Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma(NHL). Primary NL occurs as the first manifestation of a hematologic malignancy. We report a 68-year male who presented to us with low backache and burning paraesthesia in the back of both lower limbs followed by a left foot drop. The clinical and electrophysiological examination was suggestive of bilateral lumbosacral radiculopathy involving L2-S1 roots. Plain MRI of the lumbosacral spine was normal. F18FDG PET CT Scan revealed increased uptake in both L5 and left L3 roots. Contrast-enhanced MRI of the lumbosacral spine showed marked fusiform thickening and enhancement of both L5 and left L3 roots CT-guided Biopsy from left L5 root, lymph node, and bone marrow was suggestive of large B cell lymphoma-germinal center cell type. The diagnosis was neurolymphomatosis secondary to NHL.

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Background: A high dose of statin is used to obtain an intensive lipid-lowering in stroke patients, even in patients with normal lipid levels. There are limited data on effect of dosage of statins and functional outcome in stroke patients. Objectives:

1. To compare serum cholesterol levels with severity of stroke measured by infarct volume.
2. To compare functional outcome measured by mRS at day 90 with the dose of statin.

Materials and Methods: This retrospective observational study was conducted in KMC Hospital Manipal, India between 2016 and 2018. Result: A total of 100 consecutive patients were included in the study, out of which 60 (60.0%) were males. Hyperlipidemia was present in 65 (65.0%) patients. On comparing the serum cholesterol levels with infarct volume using MRI, patients with low volume of ≤70 ml had higher mean serum total cholesterol concentration (223.83 mg/dl), whereas patients with high volume of >70 ml had low mean cholesterol level (218.70 mg/dl). The patients were divided into those who received low dose (≤20 mg) versus high dose (≥40 mg equivalent) of Atorvastatin. On comparing the mRS values at baseline and on day 90 with the dose of statins, patients who received a higher dosage had a statistically significant fall in mRS (p-0.045) at day 90. Conclusion: It was found that serum cholesterol levels were inversely related to the stroke severity. However, a higher the dose of statins resulted in better functional outcome and survival in post-stroke patients, possibly due to its neuroprotective effect.

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Background: Mycobacterium abscessus complex (MabC) has emerged as an important cause of human infections, including meningitis. In the absence of correct microbiological identification, cases of MabC meningitis are treated with conventional anti-tubercular therapy, thereby worsening the outcome. Objective: The current study was conducted to determine the clinical features, antimicrobial susceptibility, and outcome of patients with MabC meningitis. Material and Methods: Cerebrospinal fluid specimens processed between 2011 and 2021 were subjected to smear, culture, MALDI TOF identification, hsp65 gene sequencing, and susceptibility testing using Sensititre™ RAPMYCOI plates along with a literature review. Results: 12 cases of MabC meningitis were identified between 2011 and 2021, 11 of which were M. abscessus subspecies abscessus on hsp65 gene sequencing. A pioneer case of meningitis with M. abscessus subspecies bolletii was also identified. The common predispositions were TB elsewhere, HIV positivity, and head injury. Two patients had dual infections, both MabC and TB. Ten patients succumbed to infection with a mean survival of 11 months. All isolates were susceptible to amikacin and tigecycline and subspecies bolletii had a higher minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) than subspecies abscessus. A combined analysis with the available literature, reporting 19 more cases, revealed that the overall mortality of MabC meningitis was 61.3% (19/31) and that of shunt-associated/neurosurgical intervention-related MabC meningitis was 66.7% (12/20). To date, out of 20 MabC meningitis isolates in which subspecies identification was carried, 13 were M. abscessus, six were M. massiliense, and one was M. bolletii. Conclusion: MabC is an important differential diagnosis of chronic meningitis. Prompt identification and speciation are imperative for targeted therapy, thus improving the overall patient outcome.

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Epidermoid cysts originate from ectopic embryonic epithelial cells and are a very common type of benign intracranial tumor. However, the incidence of intraventricular epidermoid cysts is low, and lateral intraventricular epidermoid cysts are even rarer. Here, we present a case of lateral intraventricular epidermoid cyst and review the relevant literature. A 54-year-old female complained of recurrent headaches over a 5-year period, with aggravated symptoms during the last 2 months or more. A computed tomography of the brain showed a low-density mass in the lateral ventricle and enlargement of the right ventricle. Cranial magnetic resonance imaging further confirmed that the mass was an epidermoid cyst. The patient underwent microscopic surgical resection combined with endoscopy using an interhemispheric craniotomy approach. The mass was satisfactorily removed, and the patient recovered well. Lateral intraventricular epidermoid cysts often present with clinical symptoms due to the invasion of surrounding brain tissue or blockage of the cerebrospinal fluid system. Diagnosis relies on examination by magnetic resonance imaging, and treatment relies on surgical resection. The prognoses of patients are mostly excellent and depend on whether the tumor is resected cleanly or not.

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Background: Mental retardation, X-linked, syndromic, Houge type (MRXSHG) is a form of mental retardation characterized by intellectual disability, speech and language impairments, and early-onset seizures. It has been recently recorded in Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), and only 10 cases have been reported in the literature so far. Objective: To highlight the novel neuroimaging findings in the pediatric X-linked intellectual disability with a missense mutation of connector enhancer of kinase suppressor of RAS2 (CNKSR2) gene. Material and Methods: We present a case of intellectual disability, refractory epilepsy, speech and language delay with subtle dysmorphism, and behavioral issues in an 11-year-old boy with novel neuroimaging findings in a CNKSR2 gene with missense mutation. Results: Brain MRI revealed involvement of the basal ganglia, predominantly the neostriatum, and along with the subependymal aspects with focal cavitations involving, especially the bilateral caudate heads. There was relative sparing of the globus pallidi and posterior putamina bilaterally. Whole-exome sequencing identified a hemizygous missense pathogenic variant in the CNKSR2 gene. The mother was found to be an asymptomatic carrier. Conclusion: This case report highlights the rare missense mutation in the CNKSR2 gene and abnormal neuroimaging findings, which further provide information about the phenotypic characteristics of X-linked syndromic intellectual disability.

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Background: SH3TC2 variations lead to demyelinating recessive Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease, which is commonly associated with early-onset scoliosis and cranial neuropathy. Data from Indian ethnicity is limited. Objective: We aim to report the characteristics of patients with SH3TC2-associated neuropathy from an Indian cohort. Patients and Methods: Data of five unrelated subjects with SH3TC2 variations were analyzed. Results: Clinical features included female predominance (n = 4), early-onset neuropathy (n = 2), pes cavus and hammer toes (n = 4), kyphoscoliosis (n = 1), impaired vision and hearing (n = 1), facial muscle weakness (n = 1), impaired kinaesthetic sense (n = 3), tremor (n = 2), and ataxia (n = 1). Four patients had the “CMT” phenotype, while one patient had Roussy–Levy syndrome. All had demyelinating electrophysiology with conduction velocities being “very slow” in one, “slow” in one, “mildly slow” in two, and “intermediate” in one patient. Brain stem auditory evoked potentials were universally abnormal though only one patient had symptomatic deafness. Seven variants were identified in SH3TC2 [homozygous = 3 (c.1412del, c.69del, c.3152G>A), heterozygous = 4 (c.1105C>T, c.3511C>T, c.2028G>C, c.254A>T)]. Except for c.3511C>T variant, the rest were novel. Three patients had additional variations in genes having pathobiological relevance in other CMTs or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Conclusion: We provide data on a cohort of patients of Indian origin with SH3TC2 variations and highlight differences from other cohorts. Though the majority were not symptomatic for hearing impairment, evoked potentials disclosed abnormalities in all. Further studies are required to establish the functional consequences of novel variants and their interacting molecular partners identified in the present study to strengthen their association with the phenotype.

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Dystonia has been described in a few cases with SSPE, but there are only very few reports with status dystonicus and none from South India. Here, we report a six-year-old child presenting with severe dystonic posturing of all four limbs and trunk for 10 days duration following a febrile illness and initially treated elsewhere as viral encephalitis. Scalp EEG showed periodic high-amplitude slow wave discharges. MRI brain showed T2/FLAIR hyperintensity in bilateral frontal, left parietal, and deep white matter, extending across the corpus collosum with diffuse cerebral atrophy. The titer for IgG antibodies to measles virus by ELISA was 1:625, suggestive of SSPE. With medications, dystonia used to subside transiently; however, the patient had worsening of symptoms and showed gradual deterioration.

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Hereditary antithrombin (AT) deficiency is a rare thrombophilia associated with cerebral vein thrombosis (CVT). We report a case study of hereditary AT deficiency causing CVT in three members of a family. A 29-year-old female presented with features of CVT. Her mother and a sister had CVT in the past and investigation for hereditary thrombophilia revealed low blood AT activity in all of them. The index patient (proband) was positive for the SERPINC1 gene mutation confirming the diagnosis of hereditary AT deficiency. She recovered well with anticoagulation and was advised to continue it lifelong. Diagnosing hereditary thrombophilia like AT deficiency is important in planning anticoagulation and proper counseling of asymptomatic family members regarding prophylaxis for venous thromboembolism (VTE) in high-risk situations.

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Background: Due to effective treatment of middle ear infections there is a change in etiologies causing lateral sinus thrombosis (LST) and outcome. There is a paucity of literature describing homogenous group of patients with nonseptic LST (NS-LST). Objective: To describe the clinical profile, risk factors, outcome of patients of NS-LST seen at a single center from South India. Methods and Materials: Prospective, observational study of 100 patients of NS-LST patients, diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) seen at the stroke unit. Results: During 2 years, 100 patients of NS-LST (isolated: combined: 27:73) (male: female: 44:56), mean age: 31.45 ± 11.13 years, were seen. Subacute presentation (74%) with headache, seizures, focal deficits, and features of raised intracranial pressure were presenting features. Hyperhomocysteinemia (61%), anemia (57%), postpartum state (41%), OCP use (37%), and low VitB12 (32%) were commonly seen risk factors. Imaging with MRI compared withcomputerized tomography (CT) had better diagnostic sensitivity (100% vs. 67%), detection of parenchymal (81% vs. 67%)/hemorrhagic (79% vs. 74%) lesions, and cortical vein thrombosis (31% vs. 15.46%). Treatment with anticoagulation and supportive therapy resulted in good outcome (mRS (0-2)) at 3 months in 81%.There were four deaths, all during admission (one – isolated, three – combined) and 11 patients underwent decompressive surgery. Patients with low GCS level of sensoriumat admission, hemiparesis, combined LST, cerebellar involvement, and decompressive craniectomy had a poor outcome. Conclusion: This single-center large cohort study of NS-LST patients brings out the clinical features, risk factors (peculiar to developing countries), and the superiority of MRI in the diagnosis. Majority of patients have good outcome, with low mortality with 10% requiring decompressive surgery.

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Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia/lymphoma (ALL) is a systemic disease which primarily involves bone marrow or lymphoid organs. Extranodal presentation of ALL is uncommon, and ALL presenting as a dural mass is exceedingly rare. Here we present a case of primary dural B-cell ALL which was preoperatively diagnosed as meningioma on clinico-radiological grounds. A 27-year-old female patient presented with left hemicranial headache for one month's duration along with progressive vision loss of in both eye and altered behaviour. Contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (CE-MRI) suggest dural based mass with dural tail sign. Histopathological examination of the resected specimen revealed B-cell ALL. Further systemic investigations didn't suggest any peripheral blood, bone marrow or lymph node involvement. To the best of our knowledge, only two cases of primary dural ALL have been reported in the literature so far. This report highlights the diagnostic difficulty in extramedullary precursor lymphoid neoplasm.

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Background: Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a debilitating disorder that presents with sudden onset of severe, unilateral, paroxysmal, and lancinating pain usually lasting for few seconds to few minutes. Aims and Objectives: The main aim of our study was to correlate the prepontine cisternal space thickness, with a severity of neurovascular compression (NVC) and percentage reduction of pain (patient outcome). Materials and Methods: Ours is an observational prospective study of 40 patients presenting with TN for magnetic resonance imaging in our department. Patients were followed up on medical treatment and their pain severity evaluated on their follow-up visit. Patients were divided into two groups based on prepontine cisternal space (Group A: ≤4 mm, Group B: >4 mm) and into three groups based on the percentage reduction of pain, Group 1 (0–35%), Group 2 (36–70%), and Group 3 consisted of patients with pain reduction of more than 70%. Ipsilateral prepontine cisternal space thickness was correlated with grade of NVC and percentage reduction of pain. Results: Mean percentage of pain reduction in group A and group B was 34.12 and 60.68%, respectively. Approximately 23.80% of grade1 NVC were seen in group A and 76.20% in group B, while 80% of grade 3 NVC were seen in group A and only 20% were seen in group B. Conclusion: There was poor response to medical treatment, in patients with narrowed prepontine cisternal space thickness with an inverse relationship between the grade of NVC and cisternal space thickness.

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Background: Acute stroke is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Myocardial injury is an important complication of acute cerebrovascular events. Neurogenic stress cardiomyopathy (NSC) is a condition of acute myocardial systolic dysfunction that can be observed after acute cerebrovascular events. Objective: In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between myocardial function assessed by two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography and National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study screened 97 patients (males, 42; females, 55; 65 ± 16 years) with acute ischemic stroke. Around 17 patients were excluded and 80 patients were studied. Patients were divided into two groups based on the calculated NIHSS score (Group 1, NIHSS score <16; Group 2, NIHSS score ≥16). Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data for all patients were collected. Cardiac function was evaluated by two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography within 48 h of admission to the neurology care unit. Results: There were no significant differences in the demographic parameters of patients. The absolute value of global longitudinal systolic strain (GLS) was significantly higher in Group 1 patients than in Group 2 patients (21.4 ± 2.2 vs 15.9 ± 2.7, P = 0.0281). We found that thirteen patients (22%) had normal LVEF and abnormal LV GLS in Group 1 (P = 0.036). Eight patients (36%) had normal LVEF and abnormal LV GLS in Group 2 (P = 0.042). E/e', QT on ECG, and serum troponin levels were significantly higher in Group 2 patients than in Group 1 patients (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Our results suggest that GLS is associated with stroke severity on admission in patients with acute ischemic stroke. GLS is an indicator of myocardial deformation with a different from LVEF. GLS can detect early myocardial dysfunction despite preserved LVEF.

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Lymphoplasmacyte-rich meningioma (LP meningioma) is a rare form of grade 1 meningioma. It shows dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate, mimicking an inflammatory lesion. We present a case of Lymphoplasmacyte-rich (LP) meningioma in the left parasagittal region in a 47-year-old female. On histological examination, it showed dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate masking the meningothelial component. There was dense fibrosis and numerous IgG4-positive plasma cells (100-120/hpf), admixed with lymphocytes and few histiocytes. The meningothelial component was highlighted by epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) immunostain. The patient had normal serum IgG4 level. This case highlights the morphological overlap between LP meningioma and IgG4-related disease. The presence of fibrosis and increased IgG4-positive plasma cells as a major inflammatory component in LP meningioma, as demonstrated in the present case and some other previous studies raise suspicion of its association with IgG4-related disease. However, this hypothesis requires further detailed studies for confirmation.

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A case of cardioembolic stroke in a patient with sinus of Valsalva aneurysm. The patient presented with chief complaints of syncope, with slurring of speech and a history of deviation of angle of mouth to the right side, which resolved over one day. Examination revealed no focal neurological deficit. CT Brain revealed a lacunar infarct over the left frontal cortex. Echocardiography showed sinus of Valsalva aneurysm of the non-coronary cusp. Hence a diagnosis of cardioembolic stroke secondary to thrombus present in the sinus of Valsalva of the aneurysm was considered. This is a rare presentation of Sinus of Valsalva as a cardioembolic stroke.

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Lipogenic differentiation in ependymoma is an infrequent occurrence with very few reported cases. The grading was done solely based on the histomorphology and molecular subtyping was not described in such ependymomas. New molecular classification divided ependymomas in nine different subgroups, of which supratentorial location tumor usually exhibits C11orf95-RELA, YAP1-MAMLD1, and YAP1-FAM118B fusion proteins. A 46-year-old female presented with headache and right-sided parapresis. Radilogy revealed a large intraxial left parietooccipital mass lesion, which histologically and immuohistochemically confirmed as anaplastic ependymoma with extensive lipogenic changes. The ependymal origin of the tumor was corroborated by the immunohistochemistry and ultrastructural studies. Molecular studies for C11orf95-RELA, YAP1-MAMLD1, and YAP1-FAM118B fusion proteins were negative. This is the first documentation of fusion negative supratentorial anaplastic ependymoma with lipogenic differentiation. This novel finding needs further reinforcement by similar studies to identify its impact on the disease outcome.

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A novel use of preoperative wire localization to aid in the removal of small deep-seated soft tissue nerve sheath tumors is described. Wire localization is commonly used in breast surgery, and applying this technique in neurosurgery will enable the surgeon to directly reach the lesion with smaller incisions and prevent unnecessary soft tissue dissection.

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Background: Pneumothorax is reported as a complication of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). The present report describes the incidence, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of pneumothorax in acute neurologically ill COVID-19 positive patients admitted to the COVID-19 neuro-intensive care unit (CNICU). Methods: In this retrospective study, pneumothorax was identified by reviewing chest radiographs of acute neurologically ill patients with and without associated COVID-19 admitted to the CNICU and non-COVID-19 NICU, respectively, from July to November 2020. The clinico-epidemiological characteristics of acute neurologically ill COVID-19 positive patients with pneumothorax are described. Results: The incidence of pneumothorax was 17% (8/47) in acute neurologically ill COVID-19 positive patients in the CNICU and 14.6% (6/41) in patients who received mechanical ventilation (MV). In contrast, the incidence of pneumothorax in acute neurologically ill non-COVID-19 patients admitted to the NICU was 3.7% (7/188) and 0.69% (1/143) in patients receiving MV. Conclusion: In our study, the incidence of pneumothorax was higher in patients with concomitant neurological and COVID-19 diseases than in acute neurologically ill non-COVID-19 patients managed during the same period in the ICUs.

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Background and Objective: Parkinson's disease sleep scale-2 (PDSS-2) is a reliable sleep assessment tool which has been validated in several languages. As sleep problems have a great impact on the quality of life of Parkinson's disease patients, we aimed to translate and validate PDSS-2 in Hindi for its wider use among Hindi-speaking Indian patients. Our study objective was to translate PDSS-2 in Hindi (H-PDSS-2) and to assess the psychometric properties of H-PDSS-2 questionnaire for its use in Hindi-speaking Indian PD patients. Secondly, we aimed to compare the results with those of the other language PDSS-2 validation studies. Material and Methods: This study was done in two phases, enrolling 16 patients and 16 controls in the first/translation phase for assessment of internal consistency and discriminative power of PDSS-2. The test–retest reliability was determined in the second phase on 35 Parkinson's disease patients who were followed-up at an interval of 7–10 days. Results: No difficulties were faced by the patients and controls in the first phase, and internal consistency of the scale was good (Cronbach's alpha = 0.804). There was no significant difference in total H-PDSS-2 score at baseline 16.86 ± 10.59 and on retest 16.40 ± 9.54, suggesting good reliability. Intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.710 to 0.901, and precision was 2.82 over the period of 7–10 days. Subdomains of H-PDSS-2 had moderate/high internal validity, and they showed significant correlation with Unified PD Rating Scale (UPDRS) and HY disease scale. Conclusion: H-PDSS-2 is equivalent to the original PDSS-2 for tested psychometric attributes. Its use among Indian Parkinson's disease patients will help in the comprehensive assessment of sleep problems among PD patients.

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