0000000000184145
AUTHOR
Angelika Gutenberg
Inflammatory pituitary lesions
Abstract Inflammatory pituitary lesions are rare but important differential diagnoses of nonfunctioning pituitary masses. Primary hypophysitis as an autoimmune disorder has received increasing attention over the past decades. In the last decade, immune checkpoint inhibitor–induced hypophysitis has emerged as a new type of secondary hypophysitis. Various pituitary tumors may also cause secondary hypophysitis. Systemic, noninfectious granulomatous diseases that can involve the pituitary region include sarcoidosis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, Langerhans cell histiocytosis, Erdheim-Chester disease, and Rosai-Dorfman disease. Furthermore, infectious diseases can affect the pituitary gland.…
In Situ Activation of Pituitary-Infiltrating T Lymphocytes in Autoimmune Hypophysitis
AbstractAutoimmune hypophysitis (AH) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by infiltration of T and B lymphocytes in the pituitary gland. The mechanisms through which infiltrating lymphocytes cause disease remain unknown. Using a mouse model of AH we assessed whether T lymphocytes undergo activation in the pituitary gland. Infiltrating T cells co-localized with dendritic cells in the pituitary and produced increased levels of interferon-γ and interleukin-17 upon stimulation in vitro. Assessing proliferation of CD3- and B220-postive lymphocytes by double immunohistochemistry (PCNA-staining) and flow cytometry (BrdU incorporation) revealed that a discrete proportion of infiltrating …
A novel minimally invasive, dorsolateral, tubular partial odontoidectomy and autologous bone augmentation to treat dens pseudarthrosis: cadaveric, 3D virtual simulation study and technical report.
OBJECTIVE The goal of this study was to demonstrate the clinical and technical nuances of a minimally invasive, dorsolateral, tubular approach for partial odontoidectomy, autologous bone augmentation, and temporary C1–2 fixation to treat dens pseudarthrosis. METHODS A cadaveric feasibility study, a 3D virtual reality reconstruction study, and the subsequent application of this approach in 2 clinical cases are reported. Eight procedures were completed in 4 human cadavers. A minimally invasive, dorsolateral, tubular approach for odontoidectomy was performed with the aid of a tubular retraction system, using a posterolateral incision and an oblique approach angle. Fluoroscopy and postprocedur…
Posterior ‘Motion Preserving’ Procedures (Frykholm)
Cervical radiculopathy from degenerative disease is a common problem with an incidence of 0.83–1.79 per 1000 person years. It can be caused by a cervical disc herniation, bony foraminal stenosis or spinal canal stenosis. Upon failure of conservative therapy or a significant motor deficit surgical treatment is indicated. A posterior cervical foraminotomy is one surgical option for the treatment of selected patients with lateral cervical disc herniations.
MGMT promoter methylation status and prognosis of patients with primary or recurrent glioblastoma treated with carmustine wafers
The prognostic role of O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation in glioblastoma patients treated with carmustine (BCNU) wafer implantation is unclear. Here, we report on a retrospective study of 47 patients with either newly diagnosed (30 patients) or recurrent (17 patients) glioblastoma (WHO grade IV) treated with BCNU (bis-chloroethylnitrosourea) wafers. Thirteen of the newly diagnosed patients received local BCNU and irradiation only (first-line BCNU), while 17 patients additionally received concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide (TMZ) radiochemotherapy (first-line BCNU + TMZ). Of the 17 patients treated for recurrent glioblastoma (second-line BCNU), 16 had rec…
Video-Assisted Navigation for Adjustment of Image-Guidance Accuracy to Slight Brain Shift
Background Information supplied by an image-guidance system can be superimposed on the operating microscope oculars or on a screen, generating augmented reality. Recently, the outline of a patient's head and skull, injected in the oculars of a standard operating microscope, has been used to check the registration accuracy of image guidance. Objective To propose the use of the brain surface relief and superficial vessels for real-time intraoperative visualization and image-guidance accuracy and for intraoperative adjustment for brain shift. Methods A commercially available image-guidance system and a standard operating microscope were used. Segmentation of the brain surface and cortical bloo…
Predictive chromosomal clusters of synchronous and metachronous brain metastases in clear cell renal cell carcinoma
Synchronous (early) and metachronous (late) brain metastasis (BM) events of sporadic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) (n = 148) were retrospectively analyzed using comparative genomic hybridization (CGH). Using oncogenetic tree models and cluster analyses, chromosomal imbalances related to recurrence-free survival until BM (RFS-BM) were analyzed. Losses at 9p and 9q appeared to be hallmarks of metachronous BM events, whereas an absence of detectable chromosomal changes at 3p was often associated with synchronous BM events. Correspondingly, k-means clustering showed that cluster 1 cases generally exhibited low copy number chromosomal changes that did not involve 3p. Cluster 2 cases ha…
Use of a clinicoradiological score to determine the presurgical diagnosis of autoimmune hypophysitis in a teenage girl.
The distinction between autoimmune hypophysitis and other non–hormone secreting pituitary masses is often difficult to determine with certainty without pituitary biopsy and pathological examination. To aid in this distinction, the authors recently published a clinicoradiological scoring system, which they used in the case of a 15-year-old girl presented here. The patient presented with headache, visual field defects, polydipsia, and polyuria, and she was found to have secondary hypogonadism and hypoadrenalism. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a pituitary mass of approximately 2 cm in diameter. Application of the clinicoradiological parameters gave a score of −6, which favored a diagnosis o…
Blurring the boundaries between frame-based and frameless stereotaxy: feasibility study for brain biopsies performed with the use of a head-mounted robot.
OBJECT Frame-based stereotactic interventions are considered the gold standard for brain biopsies, but they have limitations with regard to flexibility and patient comfort because of the bulky head ring attached to the patient. Frameless image guidance systems that use scalp fiducial markers offer more flexibility and patient comfort but provide less stability and accuracy during drilling and biopsy needle positioning. Head-mounted robot-guided biopsies could provide the advantages of these 2 techniques without the downsides. The goal of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of a robotic guidance device, affixed to the patient’s skull through a small mounting platform, for …
Autoimmune Hypophysitis
Autoimmune hypophysitis is a chronic inflammation of the pituitary gland that can be classified according to anatomic location, histopathology, or cause. Location differentiates hypophysitis into adenohypophysitis, infundibulo-neurohypophysitis, or panhypophysitis depending on whether the clinical and radiological signs (and pathological findings if available) involve the anterior lobe, the posterior lobe and the stalk, or both structures. Histopathology identifies two main forms of hypophysitis, lymphocytic and granulomatous, as well as xanthomatous, IgG4 plasmacytic, and necrotizing variants. Etiology distinguishes primary and secondary hypophysitis. Primary hypophysitis refers to the cas…
Evaluation of efficacy and biocompatibility of a novel semisynthetic collagen matrix as a dural onlay graft in a large animal model
Background Semisynthetic collagen matrices are promising duraplasty grafts with low risk of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistulas, good tissue integration and minor foreign body reaction. The present study investigates the efficacy and biocompatibility of a novel semisynthetic bilayered collagen matrix (BCM, B. Braun Aesculap) as dural onlay graft for duraplasty. Methods Thirty-four pigs underwent osteoclastic trepanation, excision of the dura, and placement of a cortical defect, followed by duraplasty using BCM, Suturable DuraGen™ (Integra Neuroscience), or periosteum. CSF tightness and intraoperative handling of the grafts were evaluated. Pigs were sacrificed after 1 and 6 months for histolo…
Three-dimensional Cross-Platform Planning for Complex Spinal Procedures
STUDY DESIGN A feasibility study. OBJECTIVE To develop a method based on the DICOM standard which transfers complex 3-dimensional (3D) trajectories and objects from external planning software to any navigation system for planning and intraoperative guidance of complex spinal procedures. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA There have been many reports about navigation systems with embedded planning solutions but only few on how to transfer planning data generated in external software. MATERIALS AND METHODS Patients computerized tomography and/or magnetic resonance volume data sets of the affected spinal segments were imported to Amira software, reconstructed to 3D images and fused with magnetic reson…