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Biomedical subjects

C H Rabb

Publications and source records attributed to C H Rabb.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Surgical treatment strategies in ischemic stroke.

Although the most dramatic recent advances in the treatment of stroke have been medical in nature, there still remains a role for surgery in selected patients with cerebrovascular ischemic disorders. Direct revascularization procedures, including carotid endarterectomy and extracranial-intracranial bypass, remain important tools for the vascular neurosurgeon. Lastly, decompressive hemicraniectomy is being increasingly performed in patients with massive nondominant infarcts, as a means of salvaging individuals who otherwise would succumb to herniation. This article addresses the current indications, techniques, and results of the aforementioned techniques for the surgical treatment of ischemic stroke.

Brain Ischemia↗
PubMed1998

Catastrophic subarachnoid hemorrhage resulting from ruptured vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia: case report.

OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCE: Two patients with vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia sustained massive fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage from rupture of the basilar artery wall. Hemorrhage from this entity is not widely known to occur during its natural history and may be exacerbated by systemic anticoagulation. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: Two patients presented with ischemic events of the brain stem, which were attributed to vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia. The diagnosis was made on the basis of computed tomography and subsequent angiography. INTERVENTION: Both patients were treated with systemic anticoagulation with heparin and subsequently experienced massive fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Autopsy results confirmed the cause of hemorrhage to be frank rupture of the basilar artery wall. CONCLUSION: Vertebrobasilar dolichoectasia is a formidable structural entity afflicting the posterior circulation, which is generally thought to cause symptoms as a result of either compression of the adjacent brain stem and/or cranial nerves or ischemic events caused by thrombosis and perforator occlusion. Our experience with these two patients indicates that some lesions can hemorrhage, which is a factor that must be weighed when considering treatment alternatives.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Initial experience with endoscopic carpal tunnel release surgery.

A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent endoscopic carpal tunnel release (ECTR) surgery at the authors' institution during the past 18 months was performed. Twenty-six ECTR surgeries were performed in 24 patients. Eighty-seven percent of patients experienced significant improvement or resolution of their symptoms following ECTR. Of the patients in whom surgery failed, those who have undergone postoperative assessment of nerve conduction velocities have experienced improvement or normalization. Three patients (12.5 %) underwent ECTR after a previous open procedure in the contralateral hand; all three patients preferred the ECTR procedure. One significant complication, a lacerated ulnar artery, was noted. It is concluded that ECTR is a promising technique that appears to have similar efficacy to open CTR and has the potential to be a superior technique.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1995

Enlarging subependymal cyst: case report.

A 1-month-old infant with a Dandy-Walker malformation underwent the placement of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt to treat progressive hydrocephalus. On the initial computed tomographic scan, a subependymal cystic lesion larger than 1 cm in diameter was noted in the head of the right caudate nucleus, which enlarged to 3 cm in diameter on follow-up imaging studies over the course of a year. Biopsies taken at the time of fenestration failed to show the presence of neoplasia. This appears to be the first reported case of a cyst of this nature to show progressive enlargement.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1995

Options for cerebral protection after penetrating head injury.

The medical management of secondary brain injury is entering a new era in which the fruits of labor in the laboratory are paying off in the form of legitimate agents for use in human trials. As more about pathophysiology of traumatic-ischemic brain injury becomes known, more effective means for pharmacologic intervention and neuronal salvage will emerge, and optimism is high that we are approaching an era that will witness improvements in functional survival that have been heretofore unwitnessed.

Brain Injuries↗
PubMed1994

A statistical analysis of factors related to symptomatic cerebral vasospasm.

A retrospective review of patients presenting to our institution with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage between 1980-1990 was accomplished. Eleven variables were examined as to their relationship to clinical vasospasm: age, sex, clinical grade, amount of subarachnoid blood on CT, aneurysm location, incidence of vasospasm, incidence of complications, use of calcium channel blockers, time to surgery, length of stay, and outcome. Data were analyzed with univariate and multivariate logistical regression methodology. By univariate analysis, age under 20, amount of subarachnoid hemorrhage, and clinical grade were associated with a higher risk of vasospasm. Using multivariate logistic regression, these factors, along with age under 35, were correlated as being predictive of clinical vasospasm. When all patients are grouped into either good or bad outcome, and a similar analysis is performed, only in the poor outcome group is the amount of subarachnoid hemorrhage and clinical grade correlated with vasospasm. This suggests that there is a group of patients with a predisposition to vasospasm that is independent of subarachnoid hemorrhage and clinical grade, and that these patients may have a more favorable outcome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Hemangiopericytoma of the temporal bone presenting as a retroauricular mass.

An unusual case of a hemangiopericytoma arising from the temporal bone is presented. The patient was noted to have a postauricular mass and was neurologically asymptomatic. A preoperative magnetic resonance image and an angiogram revealed the tumor to be highly vascular. Preoperative embolization facilitated the surgical removal of the tumor by rendering it avascular. Current therapy consists of radical resection of the tumor with postoperative radiation therapy. Patients must be monitored carefully for local recurrence and systemic metastasis.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Cardiac performance enhancement from dobutamine in patients refractory to hypervolemic therapy for cerebral vasospasm.

The use of the beta-agonist dobutamine in combination with hypervolemic preload enhancement of cardiac performance was analyzed in 23 patients who failed to respond to traditional preload enhancement following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. The patients ranged in age from 13 to 82 years, and three had a history of cardiac disease. Each patient underwent placement of a flow-directed balloon-tipped catheter and the following measurements were obtained during hyperdynamic therapy: pulmonary artery wedge pressure, central venous pressure, cardiac index, stroke volume index, total peripheral resistance, and left ventricular stroke work index (LVSWI). Mean baseline cardiac function was found to be within normal limits (LVSWI = 47.6 +/- 4.2 gm/min/sq m and cardiac index = 3.30 +/- 0.22 liter/min/sq m). After baseline measurements were recorded, 5% albumin was infused at 300 cc/hr and dobutamine was initiated at a rate of 5 to 10 micrograms/kg/hr. This hyperdynamic therapy with dobutamine in the presence of volume loading resulted in a 52% increase in cardiac index, a 15% increase in LVSWI, and a 21% decrease in total peripheral resistance. The clinical reversal of ischemic symptoms due to subarachnoid hemorrhage was evident in 18 (78%) of the 23 patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Spinal arachnoid cysts in the pediatric age group: an association with neural tube defects.

Between 1979 and 1991, spinal arachnoid cysts were found in 11 patients aged 19 months to 18 years (mean age 5 1/2 years). Of the 11 patients, six had a myelomeningocele and one diastematomyelia. The presenting symptoms included radicular pain (one patient), progressive weakness (three), increasing scoliosis (one), worsening spasticity (three), and recurrent urinary tract infections and progressive constipation (one). Two patients showed no symptoms from the spinal arachnoid cyst. The distribution of lesions was as follows: cervicomedullary (one patient), cervical (one), cervicothoracic (two), thoracic (four), lumbar (two), and sacral (one). Four of the 11 arachnoid cysts (all intradural) were located anterior to the spinal cord, three of which were in children with a myelomeningocele. Only two of the cysts were extradural; both were found in the lumbosacral region, and one was associated with diastematomyelia. Eight patients were treated with fenestration and/or resection of the cyst wall. Three patients with anterior cysts were treated with shunts, a cyst-to-pleural space shunt in two and a cyst-to-subarachnoid space shunt in one. All of the patients either improved or exhibited an arrest in the progression of their symptoms. Spinal arachnoid cysts are a treatable cause of progressive neurological deficits and, in this series, were frequently found in patients with neural tube defects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Hearing preservation after resection of acoustic neuroma: a review.

The recent literature addressing the problem of hearing loss after acoustic neuroma surgery is reviewed, and efforts to prevent such loss are discussed. Patient selection for hearing preservation, tumor size, surgical approaches employed, the use of intraoperative evoked potential monitoring, and histologic considerations are discussed. From this discussion, the author concludes that careful selection of patients for appropriate surgical approaches with direct eighth nerve monitoring provides the optimal chance for hearing preservation in patients with acoustic neuromas.

Hearing Disorders↗