Background and objective The classification of hydrocephalus in newborns and in infants is different from the classification in adulthood. This difference
exists due to disparity in the source pathologies that produce the hydrocephalus, and the practical distinctions in prognosis
and treatment choices. The objective of this paper is to present the spectrum of obstructive-communicating hydrocephalus,
which is more complex in the pediatric group, and to propose the relevance of this particular classification to treatment
options.
Materials and methods The authors categorized infants with active hydrocephalus at time of presentation into the following four groups along the
spectrum of communicating vs obstructive HCP. Group 1: patients with a purely absorptive (communicating) HCP. In these patients,
tetraventricular dilatation is usually observed with occasional extraaxial fluid accumulation. An extracranial CSF diversion
(shunt) is the treatment of choice. Group 2: patients with an obstructive component together with a persistent absorptive
component. In these patients, a technically successful endoscopic procedure will not prevent progression of clinical symptoms
of HCP. An extracranial CSF diversion (shunt) should be the treatment of choice even though some of these patients are currently
treated by endoscopy. Group 3: patients with an obstructive component together with a temporary absorptive component. In these
patients, a technically successful ETV should be followed by temporary CSF drainage [via LP, continuous spinal drainage (CLD),
or ventriculostomy] with or without supplemental medical treatment (i.e., Diamox) for several days. Such temporary drainage
may decrease failure rate in this subgroup. Group 4: patients with a purely obstructive HCP. In these patients, an endoscopic
procedure (ETV) is the treatment of choice. According to this spectrum classification, the authors classify different entities
with representative cases and discuss relevancy to treatment options and prognosis.
Results The data suggest that obstructive hydrocephalus in the very young population may be rather a combination of obstructive and
absorptive problem. The outcome of the patient depends mainly not only on the basic pathology causing the hydrocephalus but
also on the treatment that is chosen and its complications. While bleeding and infection represent the major causes for communicating
hydrocephalus, patients with complex pathologies of congenital type and intra- or interventricular obstructions may reflect
obstructive hydrocephalus. Treatment of these patients may be successful by shuntless procedures if the absorptive problem
is not the major component. In transient absorptive hydrocephalus, temporary measures were effective in many cases leading
to successful procedures of ETV and/or posterior-fossa decompression in selected cases.
Conclusions Shuntless procedures are the dream of a pediatric neurosurgeon provided it solves the problem and does not imply unacceptable
risk. However, the benefit has to be evaluated years after the procedure is performed, as only prospective multicenter studies
will truly show which procedure may have the best overall results in the developing child. Until such studies are available,
understanding the basic pathology or the combination of pathologies leading to hydrocephalus in a given child may open the
window of opportunities for other than shunt surgery in many hydrocephalic children with major obstructive component. 相似文献
OBJECTIVE: This analysis examined whether patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) tolerate continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). METHOD: Thirty patients with AD were randomized to CPAP or sham CPAP and completed sleep, depression, and quality-of-life questionnaires. Participants could choose to continue treatment after the trial. RESULTS: Patients wore CPAP for 4.8 hours per night. More depressive symptoms were associated with worse adherence (rS=-0.37; N=30, p<0.04). Patients who continued using CPAP had fewer depressive symptoms (t [19]=2.45, p=0.02) and better adherence (t [19]=2.32, p=0.03) during the trial. CONCLUSION: Patients with AD with obstructive sleep apnea can tolerate CPAP. Adherence and long-term use may be more difficult among those patients with more depressive symptoms. 相似文献
STUDY OBJECTIVE: To identify brain regions underlying the fastest and slowest reaction times on the Psychomotor Vigilance task (PVT) under well-rested conditions, as well as brain regions related to particularly poor performance after sleep deprivation. DESIGN: Subjects took the PVT twice while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging: once 12 hours after waking from a normal night of sleep and once after 36 hours of total sleep deprivation (TSD). Session order was counterbalanced. SETTING: UCSD J. Christian Gillin Laboratory for Sleep and Chronobiology (the sleep core of the General Clinical Research Center) and UCSD Magnetic Resonance Institute. PATIENTS OR PARTICIPANTS: Twenty right-handed healthy adults (8 women; age = 27.4 +/- 6.7 years; education = 15.6 +/- 1.5 years). MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: After a normal night of sleep, optimal performance was related to greater cerebral responses within a cortical sustained attention network and the cortical and subcortical motor systems. Slow reaction times, particularly after TSD, were associated with greater activity in the "default mode network" consisting of frontal and posterior midline regions. CONCLUSIONS: Optimal performance on the PVT appears to rely on activation both within the sustained attention system and within the motor system. Poor performance following TSD may result from a disengagement from the task and related inattention, and brain regions responsible for this localize within midline structures shown to be involved in the brain's "default mode." Finally, particularly poor performance after TSD may elicit a subsequent attentional recovery that manifests as greater activation within the same regions normally responsible for fast reaction times. 相似文献
Objective: To assess the relationship between tumor marker carcinoma antigen-125 levels in seminal plasma and serum and fertilization rates in an IVF program, using intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
Design: A prospective study.
Setting: IVF Unit, Lis Maternity Hospital, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Patient(s): Twenty-five infertile patients with severe oligo-terato-asthenospermia syndrome and 25 fertile male donors.
Intervention(s): None.
Main Outcome Measure(s): Serum and seminal plasma carcinoma antigen-125 concentrations and fertilization rate per cycle.
Result(s): In the infertile group, the seminal plasma carcinoma antigen-125 levels ranged from 22.0 to 1,284.0 U/mL (mean level ± SD, 229.9 ± 274.2 U/mL). In the normospermic fertile male donors, the seminal plasma carcinoma antigen-125 concentrations ranged from 12.2 to 336.7 U/mL (mean level ± SD, 110.1 ± 91.6 U/mL). This difference was statistically significant. The mean ± SD ratio between the seminal plasma/serum carcinoma antigen−125 levels differed significantly between the infertile group (47.9 ± 61.3) and the fertile male donors (5.7 ± 3.5). In the infertile group, the ratio between the seminal plasma/serum carcinoma antigen-125 levels was found to be negatively correlated with the oocyte fertilization rate.
Conclusion(s): The ratio between carcinoma antigen−125 levels in the seminal plasma and serum may be an indirect marker for male infertility and fertilization rate in IVF treatment using ICSI. 相似文献