Sebastian A. Ahmadi

Primary spinal marginal zone lymphoma: case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND AND IMPORTANCE Marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) describes a heterogeneous group of indolent B-cell lymphomas. The World Health Organization recognizes 3 types of MZLs: splenic MZL, nodal MZL, and extranodal MZL of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue. There is no consensus on the optimal adjuvant treatment modalities for intracranial primary MZLs. To date, no case of spinal primary MZL has been reported. CLINICAL PRESENTATION We present the first case of spinal MZL diagnosed in a 65-year-old man with progressive paraparesis. He underwent surgical removal of the main spinal tumor mass, which extended epidurally from vertebral body T3 to T7. Surgery was followed by 10 sessions of local irradiation for a total dose of 31 Gy. On long-term follow-up in 2010, the patient was in good health without any signs of residual or recurrent disease. Twenty-seven publications reporting on 61 cases of intracranial primary MZL were identified and reviewed. In the majority of cases of marginal zone B-cell lymphoma, adjuvant radiotherapy was used, with some combining radiotherapy and chemotherapy after surgical removal of the bulk of the main tumor. Long-term follow-up in most patients showed no evidence of disease and clinical well-being years after the initial diagnosis. CONCLUSION Chemotherapy and/or radiation have been used in larger case series. Although there is no defined treatment guideline for this rare disease entity, our review of the literature suggests a favorable prognosis when combining surgical and adjuvant radiotherapy approaches.

Early surgical occipitocervical stabilization for plasma cell neoplasms at the craniocervical junction: systematic review and proposal of a treatment algorithm

BACKGROUND CONTEXT Plasma cell neoplasms (PCNs) of the craniocervical junction (CCJ) are rare. Because of their destructive growth, PCNs may induce spinal instability and harbor the risk of sudden death. Therefore, PCNs at the CCJ require special consideration. Although the commonly used primary treatment of PCN is radiotherapy (RT), treatment guidelines are inexistent for CCJ occurrences. PURPOSE This study aimed to conduct a systematic review of the literature, evaluate the benefit of early and extended surgical treatment followed by RT, and outline a treatment algorithm based on the data gathered. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Case series and systematic review of all reported cases in the English, Spanish and German medical literature were carried out. METHODS CASE SERIES retrospective clinical study, tertiary care center (2004-2014). Patients with a lesion of the CCJ (C0-C2) were identified. Clinical charts, imaging data, operative reports, and follow-up data were analyzed. REVIEW a systematic literature review was performed using PubMed. Further manuscripts were identified by the web search engine Google. RESULTS Our series comprised four patients (one female, three males), mean age 58 years. There was one lesion of C1 and three of C2. Two patients with neck pain received vertebroplasty (C1 and C2, respectively) and RT as primary management. Both developed secondary instability of the CCJ after 12 and 5 months, respectively, and required occipitocervical stabilization (OCS). The other two patients underwent OCS and required no additional surgery and no signs of instability at follow-up. Forty-nine cases of OCS were published previously. Spinal stability was achieved significantly more frequently by OCS than by less invasive or medical interventional treatment options (p=.001; two-sided Fisher exact test). CONCLUSIONS Plasma cell neoplasms are highly radiosensitive. However, at the CCJ, a life-threatening instability may occur early and require surgical treatment. Based on personal experience, we favor OCS in this location. A systematic review of the literature supports this approach. We present a summary of our findings in a concise treatment algorithm for PCN of the CCJ.

Primary bone tumors of the spine revisited: A 10-year single-center experience of the management and outcome in a neurosurgical department

Objective: To report a large clinical series of primary bone tumors of the spine (PBTS) and review the current concepts of management. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed a clinical series of PBTS treated over the last decade (2004-2014) in the spine unit of a large European tertiary care center. Every PBTS was identified from an electronic medical-record system. Analysis comprised medical records and clinical imaging. Overall survival and outcome was measured using the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) at six weeks, six months and one year postoperatively. Surgical management and adjuvant/neoadjuvant strategies were analyzed. A thorough review of the current literature was performed. Results: A total of 79 patients were included. Of these, 44 (55.7%) were male. The age ranged from 9 to 90 years (mean 55), and most patients were adults (93.6%). Local pain was the most common symptom and was present in 91.1% of the patients. The majority of the tumors occurred in the thoracic spine (52 patients, 65.8%). Overall 86% (68 patients) of PBTS were classified as malignant and at the time of diagnosis, 7 patients (8.9%) presented with non-spinal metastasis. The most common histologic types were hematopoietic tumors (72.2%), followed by chondrogenic ones (12.7%). Within hematopoietic tumors, plasmacytoma was the most frequent type (49 patients, 62%). In 12 patients (15.2%) recurrences were seen during the follow-up period. Overall mean survival of benign PBTS was 100%, malignant non-hematopoietic PBTS 50% and, malignant hematopoietic PBTS 84% at one year, respectively. At six weeks and one year after the initial surgery, 79% and 54% of the patients presented a GOS >3, respectively. Conclusion: PBTS were almost exclusively seen in adults. Malignant tumors were markedly more frequent than benign tumors, with hematopoietic tumors being the most common type. For PBTS, early surgery is important in order to restore spinal stability and decompress the spinal cord. This allows pain reduction and prevention of neurological deficits.

Is it all a matter of size? Impact of maximization of surgical resection in cerebral tumors

The oncological impact of cytoreductive surgery for malignant glioma has been analyzed in a few prospective, randomized studies; however, the impact of different cytoreductive surgical techniques of cerebral tumors remains controversial. Despite retrospective analyses revealing an oncological impact of complete surgical resection in cerebral metastases and low-grade glioma, the oncological impact of further extension of resection to a supramarginal resection remains disputable lacking high-grade evidence: supramarginal resections have yet to be analyzed in malignant glioma. Although extension of resection towards a supramarginal resection was thought to improve outcome and prevent malignant transformation in low-grade glioma, the rate of (temporary) deficits was higher than 50% in recent retrospective studies, and the oncological impact and long-term results have to be analyzed in further (prospective and controlled) studies. Cerebral metastases show a growth pattern different from glioma with less and more locally limited brain invasion. Therefore, local control may be achieved by extension of resection after complete lesionectomy of cerebral metastases. Therefore, supramarginal resection may be a promising approach but must be evaluated in further studies.

Marking wire placement for improved accuracy in thoracic spinal surgery.

OBJECTIVE To present an innovative approach that does not rely on intraoperative X-ray imaging for identifying thoracic target levels and critically appraise its value in reducing the risk of wrong-level surgery and radiation exposure. METHODS 96 patients admitted for surgery of the thoracic spine were prospectively enrolled, undergoing a total of 99 marking wire placements. Preoperatively a flexible marking wire derived from breast cancer surgery was inserted with computed tomography (CT) guidance at the site of interest--the wire was then used as an intraoperative guidance tool. RESULTS Wire placement was considered successful in 96 cases (97%). Most common pathologies were tumors (62.5%) and degenerative disorders (16.7%). Effective doses from CT imaging were significantly higher for wire placements in the upper third of the thoracic spine compared to the lower two thirds (p = 0.015). Radiation exposure to operating room personnel could be reduced by more than 90% in all non-instrumented cases. No adverse reactions were observed, one patient (1.04%) underwent surgical revision due to an epifascial empyema. No wires had to be removed due to lack of patient compliance or infection. CONCLUSIONS This is a safe and practical approach to identify the level of interest in thoracic spinal surgery employing a marking wire. Its application merits consideration in any spinal case where X-ray localization could prove unsafe, particularly in cases lacking bony pathologies such as intradural tumors.

Pediatric neurosurgery malpractice claims in Germany

PurposeThere is limited data regarding malpractice claims in pediatric neurosurgery. Aim of this study was to analyze the rate, subject, and outcome of malpractice claims faced by pediatric neurosurgeons.MethodsWe analyzed malpractice claims in pediatric neurosurgical patients assigned to the review board of North Rhine Medical Council from 2012 to 2016. Claims were categorized as “medical error” or “adverse event, no medical error.” Severity was graded from negligible (grade 1) to death (grade 6).ResultsOf 391 pediatric malpractice claims, seven (1.8%) concerned pediatric neurosurgery. Claims were related to cranial surgery (N = 5), spinal surgery (N = 1), and a neuro-interventional procedure (N = 1). Of operative cases, three were shunt operations, two were cranioplasty procedures, and one was a spinal fusion. Complications of medical care (adverse events) had occurred in all cases. A medical error was detected in only one case. Severity of damage was grade 2 (transient minor) in three, grade 3 (transient major) in one, and grade 5 (permanent major) in three cases, respectively.ConclusionsPediatric neurosurgery accounted for 1.8% of all pediatric malpractice claims. In 14% of these claims, a medical error was confirmed. Malpractice claim rate thus appears to be lower than expected for a high-risk specialty. , adverse events were confirmed in all cases, a negligent medical error was rare. Adverse event rate appears to be a predictor for malpractice claim burden, highlighting the importance of surgical checklists, standard operating procedures and morbidity and mortality surveillance.

High‐Frequency Spinal Cord Stimulation in Surgery‐Naïve Patients—A Prospective Single‐Center Study

A multitude of evidence supporting the beneficial effects of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) in patients suffering from chronic pain syndromes following spinal surgery has been published in the last decade. Evidence is scarce, however, for the use of high frequency SCS (HF‐SCS) in the treatment of surgery naïve patients suffering from lower back pain (LBP).

Comment on: Marginal zone lymphoma of the thoracic dura causing spinal cord compression (Dey et al.)

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Scanning electron microscopic surface analysis of cryoconserved skull bone after decompressive craniectomy

see front matter 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jocn.2013.08.031 Dear Professor Kaye, It was with great interest that we read the Case Report titled ‘‘Marginal zone lymphoma of the thoracic dura causing spinal cord compression’’ by Dey et al., published in the January 2013 edition of the Journal of Clinical Neuroscience [1]. Occurrences of marginal zone B-cell lymphomas (MZBCL) along the neuraxis are indeed rare, although there has been an increasing number of intracranial cases of MZBCL reported in recent literature [2–5]. However, we would like to point out that Dey et al. have not been the first to report a case of primary MZBCL of the thoracic spine. Last year we published a detailed report of such a case along with an extensive review on all previously reported central nervous system occurrences of this pathology [6]. We are convinced this was not an intentional omission by the authors but likely an overlap in preparation of the manuscript and online availability of our review. It would be very kind if you could forward this information to readers of the Journal.