PURPOSE: To report the outcome of 50 patients with spinal metastases treated with minimally invasive stabilization (MISt) using fluoroscopic guided percutaneous pedicle screws with/without minimally invasive decompression.
OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: The advent of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screw stabilization system has revolutionized the treatment of spinal metastasis.
METHODS: Between 2008 and 2013, 50 cases of spinal metastasis with pathological fracture(s) with/without neurology deficit were treated by MISt at our institution. The patients were assessed by Tomita score, pain score, operation time, blood loss, neurological recovery, time to ambulation and survival.
RESULTS: The mean Tomita score was 6.3±2.4. Thirty seven patients (74.0%) required minimally invasive decompression in addition to MISt. The mean operating time was 2.3±0.5 hours for MISt alone and 3.4±1.2 hours for MISt with decompression. Mean blood loss for MISt alone and MISt with decompression was 0.4±0.2 L and 1.7±0.9 L, respectively. MISt provided a statistically significant reduction in visual analog scale pain score with mean preoperative score of 7.9±1.4 that was significantly decreased to 2.5±1.2 postoperatively (p=0.000). For patients with neurological deficit, 70% displayed improvement of one Frankel grade and 5% had an improvement of 2 Frankel grades. No patient was bed-ridden postoperatively, with the average time to ambulation of 3.4±1.8 days. The mean overall survival time was 11.3 months (range, 2-51 months). Those with a Tomita score <8 survived significantly longer than those a Tomita score ≥8 with a mean survival of 14.1±12.5 months and 6.8±4.9 months, respectively (p=0.019). There were no surgical complications, except one case of implant failure.
CONCLUSIONS: MISt is an acceptable treatment option for spinal metastatic patients, providing good relief of instability back pain with no major complications.
METHODS: The diagnostic categories, severity of illness and outcome from 63 episodes of severe upper airway obstruction in 56 children admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit between January 1994 and December 1999 were reviewed. Outcome variables studied included requirement for ventilation, mortality and complications. Severity of illness was determined with the Pediatric Risk of Mortality (PRISM) II score.
RESULTS: Viral croup (29%) was the most common diagnosis, followed by mediastinal malignancy (13%), bacterial tracheitis (11%) and Pierre Robin syndrome (11%). There were no admissions for acute epiglottitis. Thirty episodes (48%) required ventilation for a median duration of 4.0 days. Bacterial tracheitis (100%) and subglottic stenosis (100%) were the most likely diagnoses requiring ventilation. Difficulty in intubation was encountered in 13 episodes (43%) involving, in particular, patients with bacterial tracheitis (83%; P = 0.006). Only two patients required a tracheostomy. The overall mortality was 11%. The PRISM score for all categories was generally low (mean 10.3 +/- 1.0; median 9.0). Non-survivors had a significantly higher PRISM II score than survivors (27.4 +/- 9.7 vs 8.1 +/- 4.9, respectively; P = 0.002) and were more likely to include children with bacterial tracheitis and mediastinal malignancy.
CONCLUSIONS: There is marked heterogeneity in the causes of upper airway obstruction in the tropics with viral croup remaining the most common. A significant proportion required ventilation, but outcome is generally favorable, except in those with bacterial tracheitis and mediastinal malignancy.
Materials and Methods: Eugenol was ozonated using ozonator machine and the samples were divided into two groups: Group I: zinc oxide eugenol (n = 10) and Group II: zinc oxide-ozonated eugenol (OZOE; n = 10). The pH of the fresh sealer samples and the set samples was measured using calibrated pH meter after predetermined time intervals. Cytotoxicity of the set sealer was evaluated on mouse L929 fibroblasts using cellular metabolic assay.
Results: pH of the samples in Group II was higher when compared to Group I. Group II showed higher cell viability than the Group I.
Conclusion: OZOE sealers can be used as an alternative to the conventional ZOE sealers.