Severe ischemic stroke carries a high rate of disability and death. The severity of stroke is often assessed by the degree of neurological deficits or the extent of brain infarct, defined as severe stroke and large infarction, respectively. Critically severe stroke is a life-threatening condition that requires neurocritical care or neurosurgical intervention, which includes stroke with malignant brain edema, a leading cause of death during the acute phase, and stroke with severe complications of other vital systems. Early prediction of high-risk patients with critically severe stroke would inform early prevention and treatment to interrupt the malignant course to fatal status. Selected patients with severe stroke could benefit from intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular treatment in improving functional outcome. There is insufficient evidence to inform dual antiplatelet therapy and the timing of anticoagulation initiation after severe stroke. Decompressive hemicraniectomy (DHC) <48 h improves survival in patients aged <60 years with large hemispheric infarction. Studies are ongoing to provide evidence to inform more precise prediction of malignant brain edema, optimal indications for acute reperfusion therapies and neurosurgery, and the individualized management of complications and secondary prevention. We present an evidence-based review for severe ischemic stroke, with the aims of proposing operational definitions, emphasizing the importance of early prediction and prevention of the evolution to critically severe status, summarizing specialized treatment for severe stroke, and proposing directions for future research.
Humans ; Ischemic Stroke/pathology* ; Brain Edema/surgery* ; Stroke/prevention & control* ; Brain/pathology* ; Brain Infarction/pathology* ; Treatment Outcome

Adult ; Humans ; Rhabdoid Tumor/surgery* ; Teratoma/pathology* ; Medulloblastoma ; Central Nervous System Neoplasms ; Cerebellar Neoplasms ; Brain Neoplasms/pathology*

Adenoma, Pleomorphic/surgery* ; Brain/pathology* ; Cell Transformation, Neoplastic/pathology* ; Humans ; Lung/pathology* ; Salivary Gland Neoplasms/pathology*

Brain Neoplasms/pathology* ; Central Nervous System/pathology* ; Humans ; Solitary Fibrous Tumors/surgery*

Brain Diseases ; Humans ; Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors ; Peritoneal Neoplasms/secondary* ; Peritoneum/pathology* ; Stomach Neoplasms/surgery*

Brain ; blood supply ; pathology ; surgery ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Pituitary Neoplasms ; cerebrospinal fluid ; complications ; diagnosis ; Stroke ; cerebrospinal fluid ; complications ; diagnosis ; Tuberculosis ; cerebrospinal fluid ; complications ; diagnosis

BackgroundThe role of postradiation systemic therapy in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with brain metastasis (BM) was controversial. Thus, we explored the role of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group recursive partitioning analysis (RTOG-RPA) and graded prognostic assessment (GPA) in identifying population who may benefit from postradiation systemic therapy.

MethodsThe clinical data of NSCLC patients with documented BM from August 2007 to April 2015 of two hospitals were studied retrospectively. Cox regression was used for multivariate analysis. Survival of patients with or without postradiation systemic therapy was compared in subgroups stratified according to RTOG-RPA or GPA.

ResultsOf 216 included patients, 67.1% received stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), 24.1% received whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT), and 8.8% received both. After radiotherapy, systemic therapy was administered in 58.3% of patients. Multivariate analysis found that postradiation systemic therapy (yes vs. no) (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.361, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.202-0.648, P = 0.001), radiation technique (SRS vs. WBRT) (HR = 0.462, 95% CI = 0.238-0.849, P = 0.022), extracranial metastasis (yes vs. no) (HR = 3.970, 95% CI = 1.757-8.970, P = 0.001), and Karnofsky performance status (<70 vs. ≥70) (HR = 5.338, 95% CI = 2.829-10.072, P < 0.001) were independent factors for survival. Further analysis found that subsequent tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy could significantly reduce the risk of mortality of patients in RTOG-RPA Class II (HR = 0.411, 95% CI = 0.183-0.923, P = 0.031) or with a GPA score of 1.5-2.5 (HR = 0.420, 95% CI = 0.182-0.968, P = 0.042). However, none of the subgroups stratified according to RTOG-RPA or GPA benefited from the additional conventional chemotherapy.

ConclusionRTOG-RPA and GPA may be useful to identify beneficial populations in NSCLC patients with BM if TKIs were chosen as postradiation systemic therapy.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Brain Neoplasms ; pathology ; surgery ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; pathology ; surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; pathology ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Radiosurgery ; methods ; Treatment Outcome

A 26-year-old male presented with a 6-day history of paroxysmal headache which was worsen with nausea and vomiting for 1 day. Head CT on admission revealed left chronic subdural hematoma with midline shift. An emergency Burr hole drainage for hematoma was performed. Headache recurred 6 days later. MRI of the brain revealed a diffuse thickening and a gadolinium-enhancement of the falx, cranial dura mater and tentorium cerebelli on the left side with pia mater involved. Lumber puncture showed increased intracranial pressure and elevated IgG level in cerebrospinal fluid. Histological examination of the biopsy specimen showed thickened, fibrotic dura with a sterile chronic inflammation. According to pathological examination, idiopathic hypertrophic cranial pachymeningitis was considered as the final diagnosis. Symptoms were improved with steroid pulse therapy.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Brain ; pathology ; Drainage ; Dura Mater ; pathology ; Hematoma, Subdural, Chronic ; etiology ; surgery ; Humans ; Hypertrophy ; diagnosis ; Immunoglobulin G ; cerebrospinal fluid ; Intracranial Hypertension ; etiology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Meningitis ; diagnosis ; Steroids ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

BACKGROUNDCoronary microembolization (CME) has been frequently seen in acute coronary syndromes and percutaneous coronary intervention. Small animal models are required for further studies of CME related to severe prognosis. This study aimed to explore a new mouse model of CME.

METHODSThe mouse model of CME was established by injecting polystyrene microspheres into the left ventricular chamber during 15-s occlusion of the ascending aorta. Based on the average diameter and dosage used, 30 C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into five groups (n = 6 in each): 9 μm/500,000, 9 μm/800,000, 17 μm/200,000, 17 μm/500,000, and sham groups. The postoperative survival and performance of the mice were recorded. The mice were sacrificed 3 or 10 days after the surgery. The heart tissues were harvested for hematoxylin and eosin staining and Masson trichrome staining to compare the extent of inflammatory cellular infiltration and fibrin deposition among groups and for scanning transmission electron microscopic examinations to see the ultrastructural changes after CME.

RESULTSSurvival analysis demonstrated that the cumulative survival rate of the 17 μm/500,000 group was significantly lower than that of the sham group (0/6 vs. 6/6, P = 0.001). The cumulative survival rate of the 17 μm/200,000 group was lower than those of the sham and 9 μm groups with no statistical difference (cumulative survival rate of the 17 μm/200,000, 9 μm/800,000, 9 μm/500,000, and sham groups was 4/6, 5/6, 6/6, and 6/6, respectively). The pathological alterations were similar between the 9 μm/500,000 and 9 μm/800,000 groups. The extent of inflammatory cellular infiltration and fibrin deposition was more severe in the 17 μm/200,000 group than in the 9 μm/500,000 and 9 μm/800,000 groups 3 and 10 days after the surgery. Scanning transmission electron microscopic examinations revealed platelet aggregation and adhesion, microthrombi formation, and changes in cardiomyocytes.

CONCLUSIONThe injection of 500,000 polystyrene microspheres at an average diameter of 9 μm is proved to be appropriate for the mouse model of CME based on the general conditions, postoperative survival rates, and pathological changes.

Animals ; Brain ; pathology ; Coronary Occlusion ; pathology ; surgery ; Coronary Vessels ; pathology ; surgery ; ultrastructure ; Disease Models, Animal ; Embolization, Therapeutic ; Kidney ; pathology ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning Transmission ; Myocardium ; pathology ; Platelet Aggregation ; physiology

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether pre-operative perfusion skewness and kurtosis derived from normalized cerebral blood volume (nCBV) histograms are associated with progression-free survival (PFS) of patients after partial resection of newly diagnosed glioblastoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 135 glioblastoma patients who had undergone partial resection of tumor (resection of < 50% of pre-operative tumor volume or surgical biopsy) confirmed with immediate postsurgical MRI and examined with both conventional MRI and dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) perfusion MRI before the surgery were retrospectively reviewed in this study. They had been followed up post-surgical chemoradiotherapy for tumor progression. Using histogram analyses of nCBV derived from pre-operative DSC perfusion MRI, patients were sub-classified into the following four groups: positive skewness and leptokurtosis (group 1); positive skewness and platykurtosis (group 2); negative skewness and leptokurtosis (group 3); negative skewness and platykurtosis (group 4). Kaplan-Meier analysis and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression analysis were performed to determine whether clinical and imaging covariates were associated with PFS or overall survival (OS) of these patients. RESULTS: According to the Kaplan-Meier method, median PFS of group 1, 2, 3, and 4 was 62, 51, 39, and 41 weeks, respectively, with median OS of 82, 77, 77, and 72 weeks, respectively. In multivariable analyses with Cox proportional hazards regression, pre-operative skewness/kurtosis pattern (hazard ratio: 2.98 to 4.64; p < 0.001), Karnofsky performance scale score (hazard ratio: 1.04; p = 0.003), and post-operative tumor volume (hazard ratio: 1.04; p = 0.02) were independently associated with PFS but not with OS. CONCLUSION: Higher skewness and kurtosis of nCBV histogram before surgery were associated with longer PFS in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma after partial tumor resection.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Brain Neoplasms/*mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Chemoradiotherapy ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; Glioblastoma/*mortality/pathology/*surgery ; Humans ; Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Regression Analysis ; Retrospective Studies ; Statistical Distributions ; Tumor Burden ; Young Adult