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Biomedical subjects

M S Edwards

Publications and source records attributed to M S Edwards.

332 records · Page 19Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Aneurysms of the petrous portion of the internal carotid artery: results of treatment with endovascular or surgical occlusion.

Seven patients with symptomatic aneurysms involving the petrous segment of the internal carotid artery were treated by endovascular techniques (six patients) or surgical ligation (one patient). Patients' ages at the time of treatment ranged from 7 to 62 years (mean, 30 years). The presenting symptoms were pain (seven patients), eighth nerve dysfunction (three patients), seventh nerve dysfunction (one patient), fifth nerve dysfunction (two patients), and bruit (one patient). Two patients, ages 7 and 19, respectively, presented with giant, partially thrombosed petrous aneurysms and had hemiatrophy of the body ipsilateral to the side of the aneurysm. Only one patient had a history of trauma; aneurysms in the remaining patients were presumed to be congenital in origin. In one patient with a saccular aneurysm, a balloon could be navigated into the aneurysm, obliterating it but preserving the parent artery. The remaining six patients had fusiform aneurysms with intraluminal thrombus and underwent proximal occlusion (four patients) or trapping procedure (two patients). In all patients, symptoms were alleviated after thrombosis of the aneurysm. The only complication was a transient visual loss in a hypercoagulable patient, occurring after carotid occlusion. Petrous carotid aneurysms can produce a wide clinical spectrum of signs and symptoms in younger patients; these aneurysms frequently are fusiform and contain chronic thrombus. They can be treated effectively by endovascular or surgical occlusive procedures.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Transfemoral venous embolization of vein of Galen malformations.

Three infants with vein of Galen malformations, all presenting with congestive heart failure, underwent a total of five embolization procedures that employed a percutaneous transfemoral venous approach to catheterize the vein of Galen. In one instance, direct retrograde catheterization of feeding arterial pedicles to the vein of Galen and embolization of the fistulous connections was achieved via this route. The indications for transfemoral venous treatment included persistent symptoms despite transarterial and transtorcular embolization in one patient, an unsuccessful transarterial embolization attempt (complicated by catheter fracture) in another, and the inadvisability of transarterial embolization because of an excessive number of feeding arteries in a third. Complete obliteration of the malformation was achieved in one patient and significant flow reduction in the other two. Vein of Galen perforation with the catheter tip complicated one procedure. All three patients were stable after clinical follow-ups (9-12 months). The transvenous route to the vein of Galen can be undertaken from a transfemoral approach, obviating surgical exposure of the torcular Herophili. In addition, we introduce the concept of direct retrograde catheterization of the feeding arteries to the vein of Galen malformation by a transfemoral venous approach, a procedure that has not been reported previously.

Cerebral Veins↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Increased risk of group B streptococcal disease in twins.

Infants who are the product of multiple births comprise a newly defined group of patients at increased risk for the development of invasive, group B streptococcal infection. This report summarizes the clinical and bacteriological features of 11 sets of twins and one set of triplets in which one (nine sets) or more (three sets) infants had proved early- or late-onset group B streptococcal infection. Reasons for the enhanced susceptability of index patients and their siblings are discussed. On the basis of these observations, an emperical approach is proposed for the treatment of the apparently noninvolved sibling of a twin with invasive group B streptococcal infection.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Modified procarbazine, CCNU, and vincristine (PCV 3) combination chemotherapy in the treatment of malignant brain tumors.

Fifty-eight patients harboring recurrent malignant brain tumors were evaluated. CCNU (110 mg/m2) was administered on Day 1, procarbazine (60 mg/m2) was administered daily for 14 days beginning on Day 8, and vincristine (1.4 mg/m2) was administered on Days 8 and 29 of each 6-week cycle of therapy. Therapy was continued until tumor progression was documented. Before each course, a neurologic examination was performed and radionuclide and computerized tomographic scans were obtained. Response and progression were defined as improvement or deterioration, respectively, in at least two of the three tests. Of the 46 patients harboring recurrent malignant gliomas, 12 (26%) responded to therapy, 18 (39%) had tumor progression, and 16 (35%) had disease stability. Nineteen of the 46 patients were not previously treated with another form of chemotherapy: eight (42%) responded to therapy, eight (42%) had disease stability, and only three (16%) had early tumor progression. The median time to tumor progression was 26 weeks for patients responding to therapy or having disease stability. Approximately 30% of the patients were alive without evidence of tumor progression at 1 year. Evaluated by time to tumor progression and rate of tumor response or stabilization, this combination was similar to the BCNU-5-fluorouracil combination used for patients harboring recurrent malignant glioma.

Brain Neoplasms↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Fibronectin levels in premature infants with late-onset sepsis.

Physical features do not reliably distinguish premature infants with bacterial infections from those with noninfectious conditions. We evaluated the association of depressed plasma fibronectin with sepsis among hospitalized very low birth weight infants (< 1500 gm). Reference values were determined by sequential plasma sampling from 60 healthy very low birth weight infants. Among 17 very low birth weight infants with proved late-onset sepsis (mean age, 20 days; range, 10 to 42 days), 9 had plasma fibronectin levels more than 1 SD below the age- and birth weight-associated mean. Overall, the sensitivity and specificity of the finding of depressed fibronectin levels were 53% and 94%, respectively. These data suggest that depression of plasma fibronectin occurs commonly in association with late-onset sepsis among hospitalized premature infants.

Bacteremia↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Adult medulloblastoma: an analysis of survival and prognostic factors.

PURPOSE: This analysis aimed to review the experience in the management of adult medulloblastoma at the University of California, San Francisco, and to identify important prognostic factors for survival and posterior fossa control. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of 34 adult patients, age > or = 15, with cerebellar medulloblastoma treated with radiotherapy at the University of California, San Francisco from 1970 to 1994. All patients underwent a surgical procedure (complete resection in 17, subtotal resection in 10, and biopsy alone in seven), followed by craniospinal irradiation. Most patients treated after 1979 also received chemotherapy. Twenty were classified as poor-risk due to either incomplete resection or evidence of disease outside of the posterior fossa at diagnosis. RESULTS: The 5-year posterior fossa control and overall survival rates were 61% and 58%, respectively. The majority of relapses occurred in the posterior fossa (14 of 17). Multivariate analysis revealed that age (favoring older patients), gender (favoring female patients), and extent of disease at diagnosis (favoring localized disease) were important prognostic factors for posterior fossa control. There was a trend toward improved posterior fossa control with higher radiation dose to the posterior fossa in patients with a complete resection. Gender and extent of disease at presentation were significant prognostic factors for survival. The 5-year survival rates were 92% for female patients versus 40% for male patients, and 67% for patients with localized disease versus 25% for those with disseminated disease. The prognosis following recurrence was poor; all died of the disease. DISCUSSION: Survival for adult medulloblastoma was comparable to its pediatric counterpart. In patients with localized disease at presentation, gender (favoring female patients) and age (favoring older patients) were important prognostic factors for posterior fossa control and survival. In patients with disseminated disease at presentation, the prognosis is poor, and innovative therapy is needed to improve survival.

Adolescent↗