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Biomedical subjects

R Wijngaarde

Publications and source records attributed to R Wijngaarde.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Mifepristone (RU 486) treatment of meningiomas.

Meningiomas are common brain tumours which are generally benign, well circumscribed and slow growing. In a minority of patients complete surgical removal is not possible and re-growth of tumour tissue is a major clinical problem. Most meningiomas contain progesterone receptors. The anti-progestational drug mifepristone (RU 486) binds to these receptors. Ten patients were treated with 12 recurrent or primary "inoperable" meningiomas, all of whom had shown recent neuroradiological and/or ophthalmological evidence of tumour growth. They received 200 mg mifepristone daily for 12 months. Most patients initially had complaints of nausea, vomiting and/or tiredness. In four patients prednisone (7.5 mg/day) was given after which these side-effects subsided. CT scan analysis of tumour size, showed progression of growth of five meningiomas in four patients, stable disease in three patients with three tumours and regression of four tumours in three patients. A decrease in the complaints of headache and an improved general well being was observed in five patients. Two patients died during the treatment period from unrelated causes. Mifepristone treatment resulted in control of tumour growth (= stable disease) in six of 10 patients who had shown recent evidence of tumour growth. In three of these six patients consistent tumour shrinkage was observed.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Intracavitary brachytherapy of cystic craniopharyngiomas.

Visual function, endocrinological status, and radiological outcome are reported in 31 patients harboring a cystic craniopharyngioma, who underwent 35 intracavitary brachytherapy procedures with yttrium-90. In 26 of these patients intracavitary brachytherapy was the primary treatment. The follow-up period ranged from 2 to 80 months (41 +/- 22 months, mean +/- standard deviation). Five patients died from tumor-related causes. Endocrine recovery was modest. Prior to brachytherapy, visual acuity was diminished in 38 eyes and field defects were present in 46. Funduscopy before treatment revealed optic atrophy in 47% of the eyes. Visual acuity improved in 29% of the eyes studied, remained stable in 13%, and deteriorated in 58%. Visual field defects improved in 28% of the eyes studied, remained stable in 20%, and deteriorated in 52%. The possible causes for deterioration in visual function are discussed. Complete resolution of 10 cysts was noted. In 12 patients the size of the cyst decreased; however, in three of these patients new cyst formation took place. The cyst size stabilized in six cases and increased in three. Although there is still a substantial degree of visual function deterioration following intracavitary brachytherapy, morbidity is otherwise low, making this treatment modality a reasonable alternative to craniotomy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Influence of age on the management of blow-out fractures of the orbital floor.

This study concerns 50 patients with blow-out fractures of the orbital floor, including 15 children, and was designed to evaluate the influence of age on clinical presentation and postoperative results. Fourteen of the 15 children were found to have a trap-door fracture. This type of fracture was not found in adults, who usually present with a large "open-door" fracture. In trap-door fractures, orbital tissues are liable to become trapped and even strangulated. It is therefore suggested that young patients with severely restricted eyeball motility, an unequivocal positive forced duction test, and findings indicating blow-out fracture of the orbital floor on CT, should undergo operative treatment as soon as possible after injury. A "wait and see" policy, keeping the patient under observation, seems to be appropriate for blow-out fractures in adults. Surgical treatment is recommended only in those adult patients who demonstrate impairment of vertical eyeball motility within the mainfield of view after the haemorrhage and oedema have resolved and in whom change in motility is no longer seen and Hertel measurements have stabilized.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Ten cases of optic vasculitis.

Optic disc vasculitis is an idiopathic, usually benign condition in young healthy adults. Hayreh suggested that the condition is to be divided into two types: type 1, with optic disc edema and a benign course as the dominant features and type 2, a condition resembling a central retinal vein (CRV) occlusion with a variable outcome depending on the extent and the site of the lesion. Differential diagnosis with other causes of one-sided papilledema (type 1) and other vascular conditions (type 2) is very difficult but important. We suggest performing extensive ophthalmological and neurological examinations to exclude major diseases. In this article we will give a review of the literature and a description of the ten patients with optic disc vasculitis who were seen in our clinic between January 1983 and August 1986.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Influence of transsphenoidal hypophysectomy on visual deficit due to a pituitary tumour.

The effect of transsphenoidal hypophysectomy is presented in 60 patients with visual impairment due to a pituitary adenoma, derived from a total series of 194 patients. The preoperative visual acuity and visual fields were compared with those one year after operation. The visual field loss was estimated using a semi-quantitative method. Seventy-two eyes had diminished visual acuity, and this improved in 45 eyes (63%). Visual field loss was present in 102 eyes and this improved in 71 eyes (70%). Improvement of either visual acuity and/or visual field was found in 84 eyes (78%). In 16 patients (27%) vision became normal after operation. Improvement of the visual acuity was usually accompanied by an improvement in the visual fields.

Adenoma↗
PubMed1985

Radiotherapy of severe ophthalmic Graves' disease.

The effects of orbital irradiation on Ophthalmic Graves' Disease (OGD) were evaluated in 24 patients. All patients were irradiated after a median duration of eye symptoms of 12 months (range 3-36 months). Irradiation therapy was performed for loss of visual acuity, progressive diplopia and/or keratitis due to recent progression of eye symptoms. During a follow up period of 2-4.5 years, in 11 patients after irradiation, a mean decrease in proptosis oculi of 5.1 mm was found while 8 of these patients showed a mean increase in visual acuity of 0.26. Apparently, a decrease of activity of the inflammatory process in retrobulbar tissues can be achieved after irradiation, over a longer period of time in many patients. Furthermore concomitantly administered corticosteroids could be tapered off completely in all patients. Treatment of severe OGD of recent onset with irradiation, in combination with a short course of prednisone is very effective. This study also shows that prednisone treatment alone is not very successful because of the high recurrence rate of eye sings after decrease of the dose and the many side effects of the drug.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Differential diagnostic aspects between optic neurititis and chiasm tumors.

Two patients with a pituitary tumor were first considered to have an optic neuritis from the clinical picture. The electrophysiological examination with VECPs gave results which did not offer a definite differentiation between both diseases, whereas perimetry and X-ray examination were decisive.

Adenoma, Chromophobe↗
PubMed1976

Visually evoked cortical potentials in the evaluation of homonymous and bitemporal visual field defects.

Visually evoked cortical potentials were studied in six patients with a homonymous and six with a bitemporal hemianopia by presenting a pattern-reversal stimulus separately to a temporal or nasal retinal area and by recording the responses from leads over the hemispheres. Homonymous visual field defects are characterized by a reduction of VECPs from the affected hemisphere. The disturbance of VECPs in bitemporal hemianopia is more serious, since the fibres from both retinal halves may be damaged by a chiasm tumour.

Evoked Potentials↗