Percent spinal canal compromise on MRI utilized for predicting the need for surgical treatment in single-level lumbar intervertebral disc herniation

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: There is limited information describing the correlation between the initial quantitative measurements on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of disc herniation area, canal cross-section areas, percent canal compromise, and disc herniation location to the need for surgery. PURPOSE: Our aim is to determine if the size of disc herniation area, canal cross-section area, percent canal compromise, and disc herniation location taken from MRI images of patients with symptomatic single-level lumbar herniated intervertebral discs upon initial presentation to a spine surgeon, were predictive of the need for surgical treatment. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING: This is a retrospective case matched study of patient MRI images in the senior author's private practice. PATIENT SAMPLE: From a pool of 332 patients with sciatica caused by lumbar intervertebral disc herniations at our institution, 65 patients had surgery, of which MRI images were available and analyzed on 44 patients. Forty-four additional patients were randomly selected from the remaining 267 original group as nonoperative controls. METHODS: The axial MRI image showing the largest canal compromise by the herniated disc was selected for measurements. Using T1- and T2-weighted images, the areas of interest were digitally scanned at high resolution. The canal area and disc herniation area measurement were calculated from the total number of pixels per cross-sectional area, multiplied by a scan correction factor, mm(2) /pixel. Disc herniation locations were classified into either central or paracentral. The percent canal compromise was obtained by disc herniation area divided by canal cross-section area and multiplied by 100. RESULTS: The surgical group's overall mean herniated disc area was 219.6 square millimeter (mm(2)), 179.8 at L4-5, and 267.4 at L5-S1. The nonoperative group's overall mean herniated disc area was 178.4 mm(2), 135.1 at L2-3, 160.3 at L4-5, and 207.4 at L5-S1. The surgical group's overall mean canal cross-sectional area was 471.8 mm(2), 418.6 at L4-5, and 535.6 at L5-S1. The nonoperative group's overall mean canal cross-sectional area was 541.3 mm(2), 518.1 at L2-3, 446.8 at L4-5, and 669.9 at L5-S1. The overall percent canal compromise ratio in the surgery group was 46.7%, 44.1% at L4-5, and 49.8% at L5-S1. The overall percent canal compromise in the nonoperative group was 34.2%, 34.1% at L2-3, 36.1% at L4-5, and 31.8% at L5-S1. The percent canal compromise in central herniations at L4-5 level was 53.0% in the surgical group, and 32.8% in the nonoperative group; at the L5-S1 level surgical group percent canal compromise was 64.1% and in the nonoperative group canal compromise was 27%. L4-L5 level paracentral herniations canal compromise was 36.7% in the surgical group compared with 42.5% canal compromise in the nonoperative group. At the L5-S1 level the canal compromise was 45% in the surgical group and 34.8% in the nonoperative group. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show a trend for patients treated with surgery to have larger disc herniation areas and smaller canal cross-section areas, corresponding to larger percent canal compromise than the nonoperative group. Centrally located herniations followed this trend closely at all levels studied. However, the paracentral herniation at the L4-5 level does not follow this trend, possibly because paracentral disc herniation clinical course is determined more by herniation location rather than the overall herniation size.     

Clinical and histopathological findings of ''psoriatic neurodermatitis'' and of typical lichen simplex chronicus

BACKGROUND: We have seen several patients with itchy lichenified plaques located bilaterally on the elbows and/or knees and have named this condition 'psoriatic neurodermatitis' (PN). OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare clinical and histopathological characteristics of these patients to those of patients with typical lichen simplex chronicus (LSC). METHODS: Nineteen patients with PN and 34 patients with typical LSC were included. Besides clinical dermatological evaluation, the prick test was carried out on 49 patients; the Phadiatop test on 40 patients; the patch test with European standard series on 47 patients; histopathological evaluation on 39 patients; and clinical psychiatric examination on 38 patients. RESULTS: Almost exclusively, PN was seen in females and was located on the extremities. It caused more plaques than typical LSC did. In PN, the plaques were smaller, sharper, more keratotic and less excoriated, and had fewer lichenoid papules around them. Itching was usually more severe in the evening, while resting and in a hot environment in typical LSC, but not in PN. In plaques of PN, microabscesses in the horny layer, hypogranulosis, regular acanthosis and thinning of the suprapapillary plates were more frequent, and hyperpigmentation in the basal layer was less. In patients with PN, depressive disorder was found more frequently; and generalized anxiety disorder or psychosomatic characteristics, less. There were no significant differences in the results of prick, Phadiatop and patch tests between patients with PN and those with typical LSC. CONCLUSION: In our opinion, it is most likely that the so-called PN is itchy psoriasis superimposed by LSC.     

Treatment of refractoriness to platelet transfusion by protein A column therapy

Ten thrombocytopenic patients (platelets < 10–24 × 10(9)/L) who were refractory to platelet transfusion were investigated for their responsiveness to staphylococcal protein A column therapy. Nine patients had previously been treated with steroids, intravenous immune globulin, and/or other forms of immunosuppressive therapy without improvement in their transfusion response. All patients were receiving multiple platelet transfusions without achieving 1-hour corrected count increments (CCIs) > or = 7500. Eight patients had antibodies that reacted with platelets and were directed against HLA class I antigens, ABO antigens, and/or platelet-specific alloantigens. Plasma (500-2000 mL) from each patient was passed over a protein A silica gel column and then returned to the patient. Patients received from 1 to 14 treatments. A positive response to protein A therapy was defined as at least a doubling of the pretreatment platelet count and/or two successive 10- to 120-minute posttransfusion CCIs > or = 7500. Following plasma treatments, 6 of 10 patients responded with daily platelet counts that averaged 48 +/− 11 × 10(9) per L as compared with counts of 16 +/− 7 × 10(9) per L (p < 0.0005) before treatment. Posttransfusion CCI values determined in four of these patients averaged 2480 +/− 810 and 10,010 +/− 3540 (p < 0.005) before and after treatment, respectively. In contrast, among the four unresponsive patients, platelet counts averaged 10 +/− 9 and 13 +/− 10 × 10(9) per L (p = NS), respectively, while posttransfusion CCIs were 700 +/− 1410 and 1520 +/− 2460 (p = NS), respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Solitary bronchioloalveolar carcinoma: CT criteria

The computed tomographic (CT) scans of 30 patients with solitary bronchioloalveolar carcinoma were reviewed. Common features at CT included the peripheral or subpleural location of a pulmonary mass (25 cases), pseudocavitation (18 cases), heterogeneous attenuation (17 cases), irregular margins forming a star pattern (22 cases), and pleural tags (21 cases). Using these CT criteria, four independent observers attempted to identify cases of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma from a larger sample of lung cancers and benign lesions by categorizing a series of test cases into four probability categories. Although the bronchioloalveolar carcinomas were correctly ranked in the two highest probability categories 75% of the time (in 45 of 60 cases), there was considerable overlap with other lung lesions, particularly with adenocarcinoma and large cell undifferentiated carcinoma. However, even though the typical features of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma are not invariable or highly specific, they are characteristic enough to suggest the diagnosis.     

Responses to questions by medical students about family practice

Medical students frequently have questions about the specialty of family practice. Responses to 30 questions commonly asked about family practice are presented with a review of recent literature. These responses may assist medical students and their advisors in considering the choice of family practice as a career.