Turkish Neurosurgery

AIM: Advances in modern molecular techniques have led to extensive modification of the classification of central nervous system tumors. Modern molecular techniques require expensive infrastructure, trained and dedicated staff, and well-obtained optimal tissue. As a tertiary research and education hospital in a developing country, with a limited repository of modern techniques, we aimed to determine if our previous histological grading systems were sufficient or unreliable according to up-to-date literature...

AIM: Neuroblastoma (NB), a pediatric tumor with high prevalence and mortality rates, was the focus of this investigation. This study aimed to assess the combined antitumor potential of theranekron (Trn) and cisplatin in this cell line. The interaction between theranekron (10-100 µM) and cisplatin (40 µM) was examined. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The cytotoxicity of theranekron was evaluated using MTT assays, cell volume analyses, apoptosis assessments, and measurements of mitochondrial membrane potential...

AIM: Traumatic posterior fossa extradural hematoma (PFEDH) is a relatively rare entity with non-specific clinical presentation and management. The aim of this study is to perform a comparative analysis of conservative management with surgical decompression. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Between 2018 and 2022, 51 patients were admitted with PFEDH. Management decision was tailored by clinicoradiological findings. We did a prospective analysis of patient characteristics, radiology, clinical presentation, management, and outcome at discharge and one-month...

AIM: The pterional approach is a common procedure in neurosurgery but it has a broad degree of complications including temporal hollowing. The most of the patients who had temporal hollowing after pterional craniotomy have phychological, physical and social problems in rest of their lives. The purpose of this study is to investigate effect of osteoplastic pterional craniotomy on temporal hollowing and its sequelas. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 97 patients who had pterional craniotomy for aneurysm surgery were analysed retrospectively...

Objective Anterior cervical discectomy with fusion (ACDF) is the treatment of choice for cervical radiculopathy/myelopathy; however, it presents various complications. Endoscopic procedures may provide similar results and minimize adverse events. This review aimed to assess and compare the efficacy of anterior endoscopic cervical discectomy (AECD) and ACDF. Methods Major databases, registries, and other relevant material were screened for prospective trials directly comparing AECD and ACDF. No restrictions were imposed...

AIM: Trans-arterial embolization (TAE) using Onyx has recently been recognized as a curative treatment for dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs). However, TAE for DAVFs with feeders from the occipital artery (OA) remains challenging because of the tiny and transosseous properties of the OA feeders. We report our experience and the technique of two-step effective Onyx embolization from OA for the obliteration of DAVFs with OA feeders. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The medical records of patients with intracranial DAVFs treated with TAE using Onyx from the OA were retrospectively reviewed...

AIM: To evaluate the patients who underwent surgery for an anterior communicating artery (AcomA) aneurysm at our institution. We analyzed our case series and systematically reviewed the literature to identify factors that could predict the rupture of an intracranial aneurysm in patients with AcomA aneurysms or any intracranial aneurysm. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of prospectively collected data from patients who underwent surgery for AcomA aneurysms at a single institution between January 2014 and May 2023...

BACKGROUND: The presence of brain neoplasms associated with intracranial aneurysms (IAs) is uncommon and whether there is a causal relationship between these two pathologies remains unclear. The incidence of this association has increased due to improved detection with the use of sophisticated neuroimaging techniques. It is important to investigate how these two pathologies are related, whether this potential interaction worsens patient prognosis, and how treatment should be planned and conducted...

AIM: Thoracolumbar junction (TLJ) fractures are frequently encountered in spinal trauma occurring during earthquakes. This study aimed to assess the frequency of TLJ fractures (T10-L2) in survivors of the 2023 East Turkey earthquake. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ten earthquake survivors, who were trapped under the rubble and rescued alive by rescue teams, were assessed for spinal trauma after the earthquake in Eastern Turkey on February 6, 2023. All patients underwent full spinal magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography examinations to determine the level of spinal fracture and decide the treatment methods...

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AIM: In critical diseases, immune-nutritional status plays an influential role in the clinical outcome. Studies have reported that the outcome of various diseases can accurately predicted using the Naples prognostic score (NPS) which is an immune-nutritional index, the. This study aimed to examine how NPS relates to 6-month outcomes in patients with severe traumatic brain injury (STBI). MATERIAL AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 94 patients with STBI between September 2018 and September 2021...

AIM: Intraparenchymal hemorrhage (IPH) is a severe neurological disease defined by unexpected bleeding within brain tissue, with a high mortality and morbidity rate. The COVID-19 pandemic has lately afflicted millions of people globally and has emerged as a new and potentially dangerous trigger for IPH. The present study investigates the possible association between COVID-19 infection and IPH by examining changes in the preoperative and postoperative periods, mortality, and the impact of COVID-19 on IPH survival times...

AIM: The reported incidence of brain tumors under one year of age is 10 % of all pediatric brain tumors. The prognosis is poor. Treatment strategies are challenging. The purpose of the study was to analyse information regarding the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of these patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective clinical data were collected from medical records of the patients surgically treated for intracranial mass lesions at our institution between January 2006 and December 2016...

AIM: This study aimed to determine IDH1 R132H codon and the mRNA levels of PDK1, SLC2A1, EGFR, PTEN, and CD276 genes in brain tumors. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study included 15 brain tumor tissues [pituitary adenoma (1), pilocytic astrocytoma (1), mixed meningioma (2), mesothelial meningioma (2), atypical meningioma (1), immature teratoma (1), glioblastoma (4), meningioma (2), and bladder cancer metastasis (1)]. The expression levels of genes in brain tumor tissues were analyzed using real-time PCR...

AIM: The view that the biofilm layer formed on the implant surface is the main cause of treatment failure is more prominent. However, it is known that every bacterium has strains that can and cannot form biofilms. In this study, biofilm-forming and non-biofilm-forming strains of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) were used to investigate the effect of the biofilm-forming ability of the bacteria on treatment in rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty rats were divided into four equal groups as Group 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B...

AIM: Postural kyphosis (PK) is a poor postural habit in which a patient\'s back appears abnormally rounded. This study aimed to evaluate the quality of life of patients with PK compared with those with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) and Scheuermann kyphosis (SK) patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of adolescents with PK who were admitted to our clinic between January 2020 and June 2022 was compared with that of patients with AIS and SK who were admitted during the same period by using the Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) questionnaire...

AIM: Transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) is a frequently performed, minimally invasive procedure for addressing lumbosacral radicular pain that often uses Quincke and Stimuplex (peripheral nerve stimulator) needles for injection. This study aimed to compare the procedural features of TFESI performed using these two different needles (Stimuplex® and Quincke) in terms of procedure time, exposed radiation dose and adverse effects and complications, thus providing preliminary data to aid needle selection for TFESI...

AIM: The optimal treatment of cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) is still debated. Microsurgery and endovascular embolization can be utilized separately and in combination. However, each of these modalities harbor their own risks. In this study, we compared the outcomes of microsurgery only versus combined microsurgery+embolization approach in the treatment of AVMs. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 62 patients (34 men, 28 women) were recruited harboring Spetzler&Martin Grade-3 (n=44) and Grade-4 (n=18) AVMs...

The azygos anterior cerebral artery (ACA) is a rare anatomical anomaly. Clipping surgery has been conducted in approximately 30 reported cases because it is frequently associated with aneurysms. However, few cases in which coil embolization was performed have been reported. We report three cases of coil embolization for distal ACA aneurysms with distal azygos ACA at our institution in 7 years. All patients were over 65-year-old women with saccular aneurysms larger than 7 mm; two with subarachnoid hemorrhage and one with an unruptured aneurysm...

AIM: To compare the efficacy and feasibility of target area cement-enhanced percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) and conventional PVP in osteoporotic thoracolumbar non-total vertebral fractures. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective analysis of one hundred and two patients treated in our hospital from March 2020 to May 2021 and divided into groups A (targeted) and B (conventional PVP). The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), anterior vertebral height ratio, intraoperative bleeding, operative time, bone cement volume, complications, and refracture of the injured vertebra were evaluated in both groups...