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Adverse events and their risk factors 90 days after cervical spine surgery: analysis from the Michigan Spine Surgery Improvement Collaborative

Hesham Mostafa Zakaria, Michael Bazydlo, Lonni Schultz, Markian A. Pahuta, Jason M. Schwalb, Paul Park, Ilyas Aleem, David R. Nerenz, Victor Chang and for the MSSIC Investigators

OBJECTIVE

The Michigan Spine Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MSSIC) is a statewide, multicenter quality improvement initiative. Using MSSIC data, the authors sought to identify 90-day adverse events and their associated risk factors (RFs) after cervical spine surgery.

METHODS

A total of 8236 cervical spine surgery cases were analyzed. Multivariable generalized estimating equation regression models were constructed to identify RFs for adverse events; variables tested included age, sex, diabetes mellitus, disc herniation, foraminal stenosis, central stenosis, American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Classification System (ASA) class > II, myelopathy, private insurance, anterior versus posterior approach, revision procedures, number of surgical levels, length of procedure, blood loss, preoperative ambulation, ambulation day of surgery, length of hospital stay, and discharge disposition.

RESULTS

Ninety days after cervical spine surgery, adverse events identified included radicular findings (11.6%), readmission (7.7%), dysphagia requiring dietary modification (feeding tube or nothing by mouth [NPO]) (6.4%), urinary retention (4.7%), urinary tract infection (2.2%), surgical site hematoma (1.1%), surgical site infection (0.9%), deep vein thrombosis (0.7%), pulmonary embolism (0.5%), neurogenic bowel/bladder (0.4%), myelopathy (0.4%), myocardial infarction (0.4%), wound dehiscence (0.2%), claudication (0.2%), and ileus (0.2%). RFs for dysphagia included anterior approach (p < 0.001), fusion procedures (p = 0.030), multiple-level surgery when considering anterior procedures only (p = 0.037), and surgery duration (p = 0.002). RFs for readmission included ASA class > II (p < 0.001), while preoperative ambulation (p = 0.001) and private insurance (p < 0.001) were protective. RFs for urinary retention included increasing age (p < 0.001) and male sex (p < 0.001), while anterior-approach surgery (p < 0.001), preoperative ambulation (p = 0.001), and ambulation day of surgery (p = 0.001) were protective. Preoperative ambulation (p = 0.010) and anterior approach (p = 0.002) were protective of radicular findings.

CONCLUSIONS

A multivariate analysis from a large, multicenter, prospective database identified the common adverse events after cervical spine surgery, along with their associated RFs. This information can lead to more informed surgeons and patients. The authors found that early mobilization after cervical spine surgery has the potential to significantly decrease adverse events.

In Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine Publish Before Print

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Clinical characteristics of and treatment protocol for trapped temporal horn following resection of lateral ventricular trigone meningioma: a single-center experience

Zhiqin Lin, Chengjun Wang, Zhenwen Gao, Xiangrong Li, Folin Lan, Tianqing Liu, Yongzhi Wang and Zhongli Jiang

OBJECTIVE

Trapped temporal horn (TTH) is a rare subtype of loculated hydrocephalus that is often managed surgically. The natural history of TTH is not well understood, and there are few data on the outcomes of conservative management of this condition. The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical features and outcomes of conservatively and surgically managed cases of TTH.

METHODS

The authors retrospectively reviewed the clinical data for 19 consecutive cases of TTH that developed after microsurgical resection of lateral ventricular trigone meningioma between 2011 and 2015.

RESULTS

The 19 cases involved 6 male and 13 female patients (mean age [± SD] 39.9 ± 13.8 years). The mean time interval from tumor resection to onset of TTH was 3.2 ± 3.0 months (range 3 days–10 months). Symptoms of intracranial hypertension were the most common complaints at presentation. The mean Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) score at onset was 52.1 ± 33.3 (range 10–90). Midline shift was observed in 15 cases (78.9%), and the mean amount of midline shift was 6.0 ± 4.8 mm (range 0–15 mm). Eleven cases (57.9%) were managed with surgical intervention, while 8 cases (42.1%) were managed conservatively. All patients (100%) showed improved clinical status over the course of 4.8 ± 1.0 years (range 2.8–6.3 years) of follow-up. The mean KPS score at last follow-up was 87.9 ± 11.3 (range 60–100). Eighteen patients (94.7%) showed signs of radiographic improvement, and 1 patient (5.3%) exhibited stable size of the temporal horn. Significant differences were observed between the surgical and nonsurgical cohorts for the following variables: KPS score at onset, presence of intracranial hypertension, and midline shift. The mean KPS score at onset was greater (better) in the nonsurgical group than in the surgical group (82.5 ± 8.9 vs 30 ± 25.7, p = 0.001). A greater proportion of patients in the surgical group presented with symptoms of intracranial hypertension (81.8% vs 0%, p = 0.001). The extent of midline shift was greater in the surgical group than in the nonsurgical group (9.0 ± 3.8 mm vs 2.0 ± 2.4 mm, p = 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The majority of patients with TTH presented in a delayed fashion. TTH is not always a surgical entity. Spontaneous resolution of TTH may be under-reported. Conservative management with clinical and radiological follow-up is effective in selected patients.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Correlation between fractional anisotropy changes in the targeted ventral intermediate nucleus and clinical outcome after transcranial MR-guided focused ultrasound thalamotomy for essential tremor: results of a pilot study

Hiroki Hori, Toshio Yamaguchi, Yoshiyuki Konishi, Takaomi Taira and Yoshihiro Muragaki

OBJECTIVE

This study evaluated changes of fractional anisotropy (FA) in the ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM) of the thalamus after transcranial MR-guided focused ultrasound (TcMRgFUS) thalamotomy and their associations with clinical outcome.

METHODS

Clinical and radiological data of 12 patients with medically refractory essential tremor (mean age 76.5 years) who underwent TcMRgFUS thalamotomy with VIM targeting were analyzed retrospectively. The Clinical Rating Scale for Tremor (CRST) score was calculated before and at 1 year after treatment. Measurements of the relative FA (rFA) values, defined as ratio of the FA value in the targeted VIM to the FA value in the contralateral VIM, were performed before thalamotomy, and 1 day and 1 year thereafter.

RESULTS

TcMRgFUS thalamotomy was well tolerated and no long-term complications were noted. At 1-year follow-up, 8 patients demonstrated relief of tremor (improvement group), whereas in 4 others persistent tremor was noted (recurrence group). In the entire cohort, mean rFA values in the targeted VIM before treatment, and at 1 day and 1 year after treatment, were 1.12 ± 0.15, 0.44 ± 0.13, and 0.82 ± 0.22, respectively (p < 0.001). rFA values were consistently higher in the recurrence group compared with the improvement group, and the difference reached statistical significance at 1 day (p < 0.05) and 1 year (p < 0.01) after treatment. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation between rFA values in the targeted VIM at 1 day after thalamotomy and CRST score at 1 year after treatment. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed that the optimal cutoff value of rFA at 1 day after thalamotomy for prediction of symptomatic improvement at 1-year follow-up is 0.54.

CONCLUSIONS

TcMRgFUS thalamotomy results in significant decrease of rFA in the targeted VIM, at both 1 day and 1 year after treatment. Relative FA values at 1 day after treatment showed significant correlation with CRST score at 1-year follow-up. Therefore, FA may be considered a possible imaging biomarker for early prediction of clinical outcome after TcMRgFUS thalamotomy for essential tremor.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Correlation of perioperative risk scores with hospital costs in neurosurgical patients

Sasha Vaziri, Joseph M. Abbatematteo, Max S. Fleisher, Alexander B. Dru, Dennis T. Lockney, Paul S. Kubilis and Daniel J. Hoh

OBJECTIVE

The American College of Surgeons (ACS) National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) online surgical risk calculator uses inherent patient characteristics to provide predictive risk scores for adverse postoperative events. The purpose of this study was to determine if predicted perioperative risk scores correlate with actual hospital costs.

METHODS

A single-center retrospective review of 1005 neurosurgical patients treated between September 1, 2011, and December 31, 2014, was performed. Individual patient characteristics were entered into the NSQIP calculator. Predicted risk scores were compared with actual in-hospital costs obtained from a billing database. Correlational statistics were used to determine if patients with higher risk scores were associated with increased in-hospital costs.

RESULTS

The Pearson correlation coefficient (R) was used to assess the correlation between 11 types of predicted complication risk scores and 5 types of encounter costs from 1005 health encounters involving neurosurgical procedures. Risk scores in categories such as any complication, serious complication, pneumonia, cardiac complication, surgical site infection, urinary tract infection, venous thromboembolism, renal failure, return to operating room, death, and discharge to nursing home or rehabilitation facility were obtained. Patients with higher predicted risk scores in all measures except surgical site infection were found to have a statistically significant association with increased actual in-hospital costs (p < 0.0005).

CONCLUSIONS

Previous work has demonstrated that the ACS NSQIP surgical risk calculator can accurately predict mortality after neurosurgery but is poorly predictive of other potential adverse events and clinical outcomes. However, this study demonstrates that predicted high-risk patients identified by the ACS NSQIP surgical risk calculator have a statistically significant moderate correlation to increased actual in-hospital costs. The NSQIP calculator may not accurately predict the occurrence of surgical complications (as demonstrated previously), but future iterations of the ACS universal risk calculator may be effective in predicting actual in-hospital costs, which could be advantageous in the current value-based healthcare environment.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Detailed standardized protocol to prevent cerebrospinal fluid shunt infection

Yuma Okamura, Keisuke Maruyama, Shin Fukuda, Hiroshi Horikawa, Nobuyoshi Sasaki, Akio Noguchi, Motoo Nagane and Yoshiaki Shiokawa

OBJECTIVE

While cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt surgery plays an essential role in the treatment of hydrocephalus, postoperative infection due to the implantation of foreign materials is still one of the most common and potentially serious complications of this procedure. Because no previously reported protocol has been proven to prevent postoperative infection after CSF shunt surgeries in adults, the authors investigated the effectiveness of a protocol introduced in their institution.

METHODS

A detailed standardized surgical protocol to prevent infection in patients undergoing CSF shunt surgeries was introduced in the authors’ institution in December 2011. The protocol included a series of detailed rules regarding the surgical procedure, the surgical environment to minimize contamination from air, double gloving, local injection of antibiotics, and postoperative management. The rate of CSF shunt infection during the 3 years after surgery before and after implementation of the protocol was compared in patients undergoing their first CSF shunt surgeries. The inclusion periods were from January 2006 to November 2011 for the preprotocol group and from December 2011 to December 2014 for the postprotocol group.

RESULTS

The study included 124 preprotocol patients and 52 postprotocol patients. The mean patient age was 59 years in both groups, ranging from 40 days to 88 years. Comparison of patient background factors, including known risk factors for surgical site infections, showed no significant difference between the patient groups before and after implementation of the protocol. While 9 patients (7.3%) developed shunt infections before protocol implementation, no shunt infections (0%) were observed in patients who underwent surgery after protocol implementation. The difference was statistically significant (p = 0.047).

CONCLUSIONS

The authors’ detailed protocol for CSF shunt surgeries was effective in preventing postoperative infection regardless of patient age.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Development of a novel frameless skull-mounted ball-joint guide array for use in image-guided neurosurgery

Vivek Sudhakar, Amin Mahmoodi, John R. Bringas, Jerusha Naidoo, Adrian Kells, Lluis Samaranch, Massimo S. Fiandaca and Krystof S. Bankiewicz

OBJECTIVE

Successful convection-enhanced delivery of therapeutic agents to subcortical brain structures requires accurate cannula placement. Stereotactic guiding devices have been developed to accurately target brain nuclei. However, technologies remain limited by a lack of MRI compatibility, or by devices’ size, making them suboptimal for direct gene delivery to brain parenchyma. The goal of this study was to validate the accuracy of a novel frameless skull-mounted ball-joint guide array (BJGA) in targeting the nonhuman primate (NHP) brain.

METHODS

Fifteen MRI-guided cannula insertions were performed on 9 NHPs, each targeting the putamen. Optimal trajectories were planned on a standard MRI console using 3D multiplanar baseline images. After cannula insertion, the intended trajectory was compared to the final trajectory to assess deviation (euclidean error) of the cannula tip.

RESULTS

The average cannula tip deviation was 1.18 ± 0.60 mm (mean ± SD) as measured by 2 independent reviewers. Topological analysis showed a superior, posterior, and rightward directional bias, and the intra- and interclass correlation coefficients were > 0.85, indicating valid and reliable intra- and interobserver evaluation.

CONCLUSIONS

The data demonstrate that the BJGA can be used to reliably target subcortical brain structures by using MRI guidance, with accuracy comparable to current frameless stereotactic systems. The size and versatility of the BJGA, combined with a streamlined workflow, allows for its potential applicability to a variety of intracranial neurosurgical procedures, and for greater flexibility in executing MRI-guided experiments within the NHP brain.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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dl-3-n-butylphthalide for alleviation of neurological deficit after combined extracranial-intracranial revascularization for moyamoya disease: a propensity score–matched analysis

Zongze Li, Junlin Lu, Li Ma, Chunxue Wu, Zongsheng Xu, Xiaolin Chen, Xun Ye, Rong Wang and Yuanli Zhao

OBJECTIVE

Postoperative neurological deficits impair the overall outcome of revascularization surgery for patients with moyamoya disease (MMD). dl-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) is approved for the treatment of ischemic stroke in China. This pilot study evaluated the effect of NBP on perioperative stroke and neurological deficits in patients with MMD.

METHODS

The authors studied cases in which patients underwent combined revascularization surgery for MMD at their institution, with or without NBP administration. The overall study group included 164 patients (213 surgically treated hemispheres), including 49 patients who received NBP (25 mg twice daily) for 7 postoperative days. The incidence of perioperative stroke and transient neurological deficit (TND) and the severity of neurological deficits were compared between 49 propensity score–matched case pairs with or without NBP treatment. Subgroup analyses by type of onset and preoperative neurological status were also performed to determine specific characteristics of patients who might benefit from NBP administration.

RESULTS

In the overall cohort, baseline characteristics differed with respect to preoperative stroke and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score between patients who received NBP and those who did not receive it. In the 49 propensity score–matched pairs, postoperative stroke was observed in 11 patients and TND occurred in 21 patients, with no significant difference in incidence between the 2 groups. However, the TND was less severe in the NBP-treated group (p = 0.01). At 1 month after surgery, the neurological outcome was more favorable (p = 0.001) and the disability-free recovery rate was higher in patients with NBP treatment (p < 0.001). The number of patients who experienced an improved neurological function, compared to preoperative function, as measured by mRS, was greater in the NBP group than in the no-NBP group (p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis revealed that NBP administration was associated with decreased severity of TND (OR 0.28, p = 0.02), improved neurological function (OR 65.29, p = 0.04), and lower postoperative mRS score (OR 0.06, p < 0.001). These beneficial effects of NBP remained significant in ischemic type MMD and patients with preoperative mRS scores of 2 or greater.

CONCLUSIONS

Postoperative administration of NBP may alleviate perioperative neurological deficits after revascularization surgery for MMD, especially in patients with ischemic MMD and unfavorable preoperative status. The results of this study suggest that randomized controlled trials to assess the potential benefit of NBP in patients with MMD may be warranted.

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Editorial. Rear Admiral (Astronaut) Alan Shepard: De mortuis nil nisi bonum (say nothing bad of the departed)

John Rutka

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Encore careers: a solution to the unmet need in global neurosurgical care

Jacquelyn A. Corley and Gail Rosseau

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print

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Erratum. Brain repair by hematopoietic growth factors in the subacute phase of traumatic brain injury

Li-Ru Zhao

In Journal of Neurosurgery Publish Before Print