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Biomedical subjects

N A Russell

Publications and source records attributed to N A Russell.

30 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Epidural hematoma: report of seven cases with delayed evolution of symptoms.

Epidural hematomas occasionally have a prolonged clinical course with gradual evolution of the neurologic symptoms. Seven such cases are reviewed in this report. Although the clinical course is insidious, there are certain features which should signal the presence of a slowly expanding hematoma. After an apparently minor head injury, the patient who is usually in the younger age group, develops headache. This persists and is accompanied by other non-specific neurologic symptoms which may lead to a mistaken diagnosis of "post-concussion syndrome". Papilledema and focal neurologic deficits eventually appear. Definitive diagnosis is made by the CT scan, although contrast enhancement may be necessary to confirm the nature of the lesion. The treatment is craniotomy and evacuation of the hematoma before serious neurologic deterioration occurs.

Adolescent↗

Pyogenic psoas abscess secondary to infection of the lumbar disc space.

Two cases of staphylococcol psoas abscess are reported. These occurred many years after operations on lumbar discs, complicated by post-operative disc space infection. Clinical and radiological findings are reported. The features of psoas abscess and the management are discussed.

Abscess↗

Spinal epidural infection.

Thirty cases of spinal epidural abscess are reviewed with particular emphasis on mode of presentation and results of treatment. In spite of repeated exhortations in the literature for earlier diagnosis, the results remain unsatisfactory because many patients have progressed to severe or complete paralysis before the correct diagnosis is made and surgical treatment carried out.

Abscess↗

Treatment of carotid cavernous fistula by intravascular occlusion using a balloon catheter.

The surgical treatment of carotid cavernous fistula gradually evolved into a "trapping" technique. This technique includes ligation of the cervical internal carotid artery, clipping of the intracranial portion distal to the fistula and often embolization of the isolated segment. The development of embolization techniques using intravascular balloon catheters greatly simplified this treatment. The authors report a case of spontaneous carotid cavernous fistula in which obliteration was achieved by an intracarotid balloon catheter. This was inserted by direct puncture of the carotid artery, which had been exposed by a simple neck incision. The patient's visual acuity was preserved. The efficacy, ease and safety of this method are emphasized.

Arteriovenous Fistula↗

Cerebellar abscess due to Blastomyces dermatitidis.

A case of cerebellar abscess due to Blastomyces dermatitidis is reported and the literature of central nervous system blastomycosis is reviewed. The case is of interest for two reasons: 1. No obvious site of primary blastomycotic infection was found, despite an extensive search. 2. The focal blastomycotic involvement of the CNS was not associated with meningitis. Only two other such cases are explicitly reported in the literature.

Amphotericin B↗

Diastematomyelia in adults. A review.

A consecutive series of 45 cases of diastematomyelia in adults is analyzed. The majority of patients were females with a 3.4:1 female to male ratio. The ages ranged from 19 to 76 with a mean of 37.8 years. The lesion was usually located in the lumbar region. In 17 patients the development of symptoms was associated with specific incidents or events, usually trauma. Twelve patients had pre-existing static musculoskeletal or neurologic abnormalities and 20 had cutaneous spinal lesions suggesting dysphraphism. The symptoms and signs included pain and a variety of sensorimotor and/or sphincteric abnormalities. Metrizamide CT scanning proved to be the most useful diagnostic procedure. Only 4 patients were investigated by MRI and from the information available its role in the diagnosis of adult diastematomyelia is not established. Twenty-three of 24 patients treated by surgery showed marked improvement.

Adult↗