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Biomedical subjects

D Renier

Publications and source records attributed to D Renier.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

[The value of CT and MRI in the assessment of basal encephaloceles in children].

Basal cephaloceles of the child are rare pathologies which require accurate preoperative imaging work-up. The CT and MR studies of six children with surgically proven basal cephalocele were retrospectively reviewed to evaluate the role of CT and MR in the preoperative work-up of a basal cephalocele of the child. In five patients, MR allowed to define the nature and topography of the cephalocele, and allowed an accurate depiction of the optic tract, ante- and post-hypophysis and associated agenesis of corpus callosum when present. 3-D CT allowed in one case a more precise depiction of the basal bony defect. MRI allows in a non invasive and non ionising way the best depiction of herniating meninges, brain or ventricles as well as associated cerebral anomalies.

Child

Intracranial pressure and intracranial volume in children with craniosynostosis.

Intracranial volume and intracranial pressure have been measured in 66 children with craniosynostosis, 48 boys and 18 girls. The premature fusion of skull sutures is assumed to restrict skull growth and predispose to elevated intracranial pressure. Thirteen children (20 percent) had raised intracranial pressure and demonstrated a significant restriction of skull growth. In this series, volume measurement alone, however, did not serve as a reliable predictor that the intracranial pressure was raised.

Adolescent

Neurosurgery with craniotomy and CT stereotactic guidance in the treatment of intracerebral space-occupying lesions.

When intracerebral space-occupying lesions are small or located deeply within the brain parenchyma, it is sometimes difficult to localize them at surgery or to design the most direct and least hazardous surgical approach. Therefore, we have developed a method that combines conventional neurosurgical techniques with craniotomy using stereotactic guidance. We have used the Brown-Roberts-Wells (BRW) stereotactic system, which allows for computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guidance and does not interfere with the absolute sterility mandatory each time a flap is created. Eleven patients were operated on using this method. The deep tumors were approached through a linear incision of the cerebral cortex. Then a needle, fixed in the right position on the arc system of the BRW, was inserted toward the surface of the lesion; the exposure was finally widened by inflation of a rubber balloon set on the stereotactic needle. This technique allows the two lips of the cortical incision to be glued at the end of the operation. Gluing with a fibrin glue avoids the postoperative subdural collections that often develop when the ventricle has been opened. Except for one case, the postoperative course was uncomplicated in these patients. No permanent postoperative neurological worsening was observed even after the removal of an intrathalamic tumor.

Brain Diseases

Medulloblastoma in childhood: progressive intellectual deterioration.

A series of 120 medulloblastomas in children operated on between 1967 and 1987 at the Hôpital des Enfants-Malades has been reviewed in order to check whether the conclusions of our study published 10 years ago have remained valid and, in particular, to verify whether the quality of life of these patients, which had been found to be poor at the time, had improved or worsened over the years. The postoperative mortality for the whole series was 6.5%; there have been no deaths in the 35 patients operated on after 1980. The overall survival rate for the 120 children was 60% at 5 years and 53% at 10 years; for the patients who completed radiotherapy, the survival rate was 73% at 5 years and 64% at 10 years. Survival rates were surprisingly better in patients treated when under 6 years of age than in older children. They were also better in girls than in boys, and in desmoplastic compared with other medulloblastomas; however, the differences were not significant. When comparing the groups after total or subtotal resection of tumors, survival rates were not significantly different, but were lower in the small group of partial resections. Cell differentiation did not influence the prognosis. Psychological sequelae were significant and worsened over the years. Five years after treatment 58% of the children showed an IQ above 80; 5 years later this group included only 15% of the patients. These psychological sequelae were related to age at the time of radiotherapy: the younger the child, the lower the final IQ.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent

Intracranial volume in children with craniosynostosis.

The intracranial volume of 104 children with craniosynostosis was measured. Premature fusion of skull sutures is thought to deny the growing brain room to expand, but contrary to traditional teaching the intracranial volume of such children is often within normal limits.

Cephalometry

Fibrin glue in craniofacial surgery.

Fibrin glue has been utilized for the past 15 years in Europe in plastic surgery, especially at the beginning for nerve and skin grafts. For 4 years, we have utilized it in craniofacial surgery in over 72 cases. No adverse reaction has been observed, and the various applications are discussed.

Bone Transplantation

Presentation and management of suprasellar arachnoid cysts. Review of 20 cases.

The clinical presentation and treatment of suprasellar arachnoid cysts remain controversial. The authors review 20 cases treated at their institution and 86 cases from the literature reported in sufficient detail for analysis. The high frequency of endocrinological disorders, which not only persist following treatment but may also develop years later despite the satisfactory decrease in volume of the cyst, are emphasized and documented. The difficulties of management are discussed, including; subfrontal approaches to these cysts; removal and/or marsupialization of the cysts, procedures that are frequently dangerous and ineffective; and ventricular shunting which often leads to a paradoxical increase in the size of the cysts. The authors emphasize the advantages of percutaneous ventriculocystostomy, which is a simple, benign, and efficacious procedure.

Adolescent

[Treatment of suprasellar arachnoid cysts by percutaneous transfrontal ventriculocystostomy. Apropos of a series of 17 cases].

The treatment of suprasellar cysts is controversial and most often disappointing: on the one hand, subfrontal approaches to the cysts, in view of removal or fenestration, are frequently dangerous and ineffective; on the other hand, ventricular shunting frequently leads to the paradoxical increase in the size of the cyst. Because of these difficulties, the authors have treated 17 consecutive cases by the means of a percutaneous transfrontal ventriculocystostomy. In 11 cases, the cyst was perforated by a leukotome which was guided radiologically in 10 cases and by ultrasounds in 1 case. In the remaining 6 patients, the cystostomy was achieved by a monopolar coagulation under ventriculoscopic control. The results were as follows: in 3 cases, it was not possible to achieve the fenestration of the cyst with the leukotome due to the resistance of the membrane; in 1 case, the ventriculocystostomy was complicated by a poor control of the trocar progression under ultrasounds; the other 14 procedures were successful: signs of increased I.C.P. disappeared; the neurological symptoms regressed; the cysts diminished in size. However, the preoperative endocrine troubles did not decrease. The persistence of a post operative ventriculomegaly apparently did not affect the level of the intellectual development of the patients. The authors emphasize the interest of the percutaneous ventriculocystostomy, this procedure being simple, benign and efficacious. The fenestration of the cyst by coagulation appeared more suitable than by the leukotome.

Adolescent

[Prognosis of antenatal hydrocephalus].

One hundred and eight children born with hydrocephalus were reviewed in order to evaluate their neuropsychological development. Premature children and children with spina bifida were excluded. The most frequent types of hydrocephalus were the communicating type (39 cases) and that where the condition is due to stenosis of the aqueduct of Sylvius (32 cases, not counting 6 cases of Bickers-Adams syndrome and 4 cases of toxoplasmosis); 84 per cent of the children were operated upon before the age of 3 months. The mean follow-up period was 7 years (range: 1 to 14 years). The actuarial survival rate at 10 years was 62 per cent. Among the 75 survivors, 28 per cent had an IQ of at least 80 and 50 per cent and IQ lower than 60; 29 per cent of the 52 children who reached school age had normal education. Forty-six per cent of the children showed little or no disorder of behaviour. The head circumference at birth, the size of the cerebral ventricles and the child's age at the time of surgery had no influence on the neuropsychological development. However, the prognosis seemed to be better in cases without associated malformation or infected valve, in those where the hydrocephalus was due to stenosis of the aqueduct of Sylvius (except when related to sex or toxoplasmosis) and when the first IQ evaluated at the age of about 6 months was higher than 80.

Abnormalities, Multiple

[Treatment of chronic subdural collection in infants by subdural peritoneostomy].

Between 1980 and 1987, 50 chronics bilateral subdural collections in infants were treated by means of a subdural peritoneal shunt (unilateral in 48 cases, bilateral in 2 cases). In 2 patients with huge macrocranium the drains were left in situ. In the 48 others, the drains were removed after an average of 10 months. In these 48 cases, the drainages either bilateral (2 cases) or unilateral (46 cases) led to the disappearance of the collections; however, in 1 of these 48, a drain had to be reinserted due to the reproduction of the collection following the removal of the initial drainage. High level of C.S.F. protein content did not alter the peritoneal resorption. Obstruction of the catheter by a clot occurred in 3 cases with grossly bloody collections. Unilateral subdural peritoneal drainage for bilateral pericerebral collection is an efficient and safe treatment. The authors should advocate temporary external drainage only in the cases where the collection is grossly bloody.

Chronic Disease

[Stereotaxic technics with an open skull in the treatment of space-occupying brain lesions].

When intra-cerebral space-occupying lesions are small or when they are deeply located in the brain parenchyma, it is sometimes difficult to localize them at surgery or to design the most direct and least hazardous surgical approach. Therefore we have developed a method which combines conventional neurosurgical techniques with craniotomy using stereotaxic guidance. We have used the Brown-Roberts-Wells (B.R.W.) stereotaxic system which allows for CT scan or MRI guidance and does not interfere with the absolute sterility mandatory every time a flap is created. Eleven patients were operated on using this method. The deep tumors were approached through a linear incision of the cerebral cortex; then a needle fixed in the right position on the arc system of the B.R.W. was inserted toward the surface of the lesion; the exposure was finally widened by the inflation of a rubber balloon set on the stereotaxic needle. The post-operative course was very uncomplicated in all these patients. No permanent post-operative neurological worsening was observed, even after the removal of an intra-thalamic tumor.

Brain Neoplasms

Prenatal hydrocephalus: outcome and prognosis.

The clinical records of 108 infants presenting with hydrocephalus at birth and operated on from 1971 to 1981 were reviewed in order to evaluate the functional results. Premature newborns and spina bifida patients were excluded. Communicated hydrocephalus (39 cases) and aqueductal stenosis (32 cases, excluding 6 X-linked hydrocephalus and 4 toxoplasmoses) were the two main types of hydrocephalus in this series. Eighty-four percent of the infants were operated on before the age of 3 months. The mean follow-up time was 7 years (range 1 to 14 years). The survival rate, calculated by the life table method, was 62% at 10 years. The functional results were evaluated according to intellectual performance, academic level, and psychological status. Of the 75 surviving children, 28% have an I.Q. over 80 and 50% an I.Q. under 60. The mean I.Q. is 54 (range 0 to 130). Of the 52 children who have now reached school age, only 29% have reached a normal academic level. The psychological status is normal or borderline in 46% of the patients. The importance of head enlargement at birth, ventricular size, and the age at the time of surgery are not related to late functional results. The results were best when there were no associated malformations, no shunt infection, when hydrocephalus was due to aqueductal stenosis (excluding X-linked hydrocephalus and toxoplasmosis), or when the first developmental quotient measured at 6 months was over 80.

Age Factors

The calculation of intracranial volume using CT scans.

A method of calculating intracranial volume from horizontal computerized tomography scan slices is presented. The accuracy of this technique was confirmed by applying it to 10 dry skulls and comparing the values obtained with the true intracranial volumes, as determined by filling the skulls with water. Values ranging between 98.14% and 102.6% of the true values were obtained, the mean error being 1.13%. This technique is now being used to study intracranial volume changes in children with craniostenosis.

Adult

Experience with the "floating forehead".

The effectiveness of the "floating forehead" operation for treating brachycephaly in infants has been assessed. All children who had undergone this procedure at the Hôpital des Enfants Malades between 1977 and 1984 were reviewed retrospectively by an independent observer. Particular attention was paid to the effects on cranial growth, facial growth and morphology.

Acrocephalosyndactylia

Brain abscesses in neonates. A study of 30 cases.

Since the introduction of ultrasonography and computerized tomography (CT) scanning, brain abscesses are found more frequently in cases of neonatal meningitis and septicemia, particularly when the offending pathogen is Proteus. Thirty cases of brain abscess in neonates are reported, 27 of which were caused by Proteus species infections. Twenty infants had meningitis and 13 had septicemia. Most of the abscesses were enormous, and multiple abscesses were observed in 17 cases. The frontal region was involved in 22 cases (12 unilaterally and 10 bilaterally). The ventricles were enlarged on the first CT scan in 13 cases. The abscesses were treated by aspiration and antibiotics in 25 cases, and by antibiotics alone in five. A shunt for hydrocephalus was necessary in 14 infants. Four infants died, three from the initial illness and one from a shunt complication. Sixteen children have seizures. Subsequent intelligence quotient (IQ) testing was performed in 22 children: eight (36%) have an IQ at or above 80 and eight have an IQ of less than 60. In the 17 children followed for more than 2 years, the proportion with an IQ at or above 80 fell to 24% (four cases). The absence of initial seizures, sterile cerebrospinal fluid, normal ventricles on CT scans, and early aspiration of the abscess seem to be factors portending a better prognosis in terms of epilepsy and mental sequelae.

Anti-Bacterial Agents

Craniofacial surgery for craniosynostosis: functional and morphological results.

The functional and morphological aspects of craniosynostoses are reviewed, based on a series of 462 operations, 350 intra-cranial pressure recordings and 300 I.Q. assessments. Increased intracranial pressure and mental impairment are linked. The frequency of intracranial hypertension is higher when more than one suture is involved, but even monosutural craniosynostoses can be affected. Increased intracranial pressure had mental deficiency are more frequent after one year of age than before. Surgery lowers the intracranial pressure and halts the mental regression. The younger the patient is at the time of surgery, the better the results. Surgery does not improve the I.Q. once it is already impaired. Morphological results of frontocranial remodeling are good and remain so with growth. Facial anomalies associated with craniosynostoses improve after early frontocranial remodeling, except for the severe midface retrusion of Crouzon's disease and Apert's syndrome that need in most cases a supplementary midface advancement.

Cephalometry

[Genetic counseling in craniostenosis. Results of a prospective study performed with a group of studies on craniofacial malformations].

Result of a family study based on 584 patients with craniostenosis brings some answers useful for genetic counselling. For 98 patients (15%) a syndrome is associated. Third part of them has Apert syndrome, an other third part has Crouzon syndrome, and for the last third more exceptional acrocephalosyndactyly syndrome (Saethre-Chotzen, Pfeiffer) or others atypical associations, sometimes not yet described, but with an autosomal dominant inheritance. Non syndromic craniostenosis involves differently according to the type of join, but the localization is the same if recurrence will be happen. Coronal craniostenosis seems to be a dominant autosomal character, when scaphocephaly is more often sporadic; for both, an autosomal dominant inheritance is not excluded for some pedigrees. If the recurrence risk exist in some cases, it is generally well accepted by parents on account of the good neurosurgeon prognosis.

Dysostoses