A General Method for Evaluating Deep Brain Stimulation Effects on Intravenous Methamphetamine Self-Administration

Substance use disorders, particularly to methamphetamine, are devastating, relapsing diseases that disproportionally affect young people.  There is a need ...

Louisiana State University

The authors report three cases of superficial siderosis with a fluid-filled spinal canal cavity communicating with the subarachnoid space. The site of communication was identified with dynamic CT myelography and the defect was surgically repaired.

Role of dynamic CT myelography in identifying the etiology of superficial siderosis.

The application of vascularized rib grafts in spine surgery has been limited to the treatment of kyphosis with anterior placement of the rib graft to facilitate anterior spine arthrodesis. The outcomes following use of vascularized rib grafts in complex spinal reconstruction have not been adequately evaluated. The purpose of this study was to determine the results, including the time to osseous union and complications, following anterior or posterior placement of pedicled vascularized rib grafts for complex spinal reconstruction.

Results of vascularized rib grafts in complex spinal reconstruction.

Results of vascularized rib grafts in complex spinal reconstruction. Surgical technique.

The authors describe 2 cases of intraoperative thoracic vertebral body extension fractures in morbidly obese patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), undergoing total hip arthroplasty, with resultant acute traumatic paraplegia. The pathophysiology with regard to the surgical positioning and the associated risks of obesity and AS are reviewed. Additionally, strategies for avoiding these types of injuries are discussed.

Iatrogenic paraplegia in 2 morbidly obese patients with ankylosing spondylitis undergoing total hip arthroplasty.

Nonfebrile seizures may indicate underlying disease or epilepsy. The patient history can often distinguish epileptic seizures from nonepileptic disorders by identifying the events directly preceding the convulsion, associated conditions, and details of the seizure, including triggers, length, and type of movements. Laboratory testing, lumbar puncture, and neuroimaging may be indicated depending on the presentation, suspected etiology, and patient's age. Electroencephalography should be performed 24 to 48 hours after a first seizure because of its substantial yield and ability to predict recurrence. Neuroimaging is recommended for adults, infants, and children who have cognitive or motor developmental delay or a focal seizure. Neuroimaging may be scheduled on an outpatient basis for patients with stable vital signs who are awake and have returned to neurologic baseline. Emergent neuroimaging should be performed in patients with persistent decreased mental status or a new focal neurologic abnormality. Although magnetic resonance imaging is generally preferred to head computed tomography because of its greater sensitivity for intracranial pathology, computed tomography should be performed if intracranial bleeding is suspected because of recent head trauma, coagulopathy, or severe headache. Treatment with an antiepileptic drug after a first seizure does not prevent epilepsy in the long term, but it decreases the short-term likelihood of a second seizure. Adults with an unremarkable neurologic examination, no comorbidities, and no known structural brain disease who have returned to neurologic baseline do not need to be started on antiepileptic therapy. Treatment decisions should weigh the benefit of decreased short-term risk of recurrence against the potential adverse effects of antiepileptic drugs.

Evaluation of first nonfebrile seizures.

Early and aggressive resection of low-grade gliomas (LGGs) leads to increased overall patient survival, decreased malignant progression, and better seizure control. This case series describes the authors' approach to achieving optimal neurological and surgical outcomes in patients referred by outside neurosurgeons for stereotactic biopsy of tumors believed to be complex or a high surgical risk, due to their diffuse nature on neuroimaging and their obvious infiltration of functional cortex.

Strategies to maximize resection of complex, or high surgical risk, low-grade gliomas.

The development of successful pharmacotherapeutics for the treatment of alcoholism is predicated upon understanding the biological action of alcohol. A limitation of the alcohol research field has been examining the effects of alcohol only and ignoring the multiple biological active metabolites of alcohol. The concept that alcohol is a "pro-drug" is not new. Alcohol is readily metabolized to acetaldehyde within the brain. Acetaldehyde is a highly reactive compound that forms a number of condensation products, including salsolinol and iso-salsolinol (acetaldehyde and dopamine). Recent experiments have established that numerous metabolites of alcohol have direct CNS action, and could, in part or whole, mediate the reinforcing actions of alcohol within the mesolimbic dopamine system. The mesolimbic dopamine system originates in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and projects to forebrain regions that include the nucleus accumbens (Acb) and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and is thought to be the neurocircuitry governing the rewarding properties of drugs of abuse. Within this neurocircuitry there is convincing evidence that; (1) biologically active metabolites of alcohol can directly or indirectly increase the activity of VTA dopamine neurons, (2) alcohol and alcohol metabolites are reinforcing within the mesolimbic dopamine system, (3) inhibiting the alcohol metabolic pathway inhibits the biological consequences of alcohol exposure, (4) alcohol consumption can be reduced by inhibiting/attenuating the alcohol metabolic pathway in the mesolimbic dopamine system, (5) alcohol metabolites can alter neurochemical levels within the mesolimbic dopamine system, and (6) alcohol interacts with alcohol metabolites to enhance the actions of both compounds. The data indicate that there is a positive relationship between alcohol and alcohol metabolites in regulating the biological consequences of consuming alcohol and the potential of alcohol use escalating to alcoholism.

Elucidating the biological basis for the reinforcing actions of alcohol in the mesolimbic dopamine system: the role of active metabolites of alcohol.

There is increasing interest in deep brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of addiction. Initial testing must be conducted in animals, and the alcohol-preferring (P) rat meets the criteria for an animal model of alcoholism. This study is composed of 2 experiments designed to examine the effects of 1) pharmacological inactivation and 2) DBS of the nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh) on the consumption of alcohol by P rats.

Reduced ethanol consumption by alcohol-preferring (P) rats following pharmacological silencing and deep brain stimulation of the nucleus accumbens shell.

Ethanol and nicotine are frequently co-abused. The biological basis for the high co-morbidity rate is not known. Alcohol-preferring (P) rats will self-administer EtOH or nicotine directly into the posterior ventral tegmental area (pVTA).

Ethanol and nicotine interaction within the posterior ventral tegmental area in male and female alcohol-preferring rats: evidence of synergy and differential gene activation in the nucleus accumbens shell.

The results of several studies suggest that there may be common neurocircuits regulating drug-seeking behaviors. Common biological pathways regulating drug-seeking would explain the phenomenon that seeking for 1 drug can be enhanced by exposure to another drug of abuse. The objective of this study was to assess the time course effects of acute cocaine administration on ethanol (EtOH) seeking and relapse.

Cocaine influences alcohol-seeking behavior and relapse drinking in alcohol-preferring (P) rats.

The currently accepted standard of care for primary glioblastoma (GBM) consists of maximal surgical resection followed by fractionated external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) with concomitant temozolomide chemotherapy. The role of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in the treatment of GBM is not well defined, but SRS has typically been applied as a salvage therapy for GBM recurrence. This paper reviews our single institution experience using gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) for the treatment of GBM. Thirty-six patients treated with GKRS for pathologically proven GBM at LSU Health in Shreveport from February 2000 to December 2013 were identified and analyzed. Patient characteristics, treatment variables, and survival were correlated. Seven patients received GKRS in the immediate postoperative period for an average tumor volume of 10.9 cm(3), and 29 patients were treated for a recurrent average tumor volume of 11.4 cm(3) with a prescribed dose ranging from 10 to 20 Gy at the 50 % isodose line. The median overall survival was significantly higher in recurrence group compared to up-front group [7.9 months (0.77-32.1 months) vs. 3.5 months (range 0.23-11.7 months) respectively, (p = 0.018)]. The predictive factors for improved survival in the patients with GBM were as follows: Karnofsky performance scale (KPS) > 70 (p = 0.026), age ≤ 50 years (p = 0.006), absence of neurodeficits (p = 0.01), and initial postoperative treatment with EBRT (p = 0.042). Adjuvant therapy with GKRS following GBM recurrence demonstrates statistical superiority over immediate postoperative boost therapy.

Jessica A. Wilden

Department of Neurosurgery,
Department of Pharmacology,
Toxicology,
and Neuroscience,
Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Neuroscience

Louisiana State University

A General Method for Evaluating Deep Brain Stimulation Effects on Intravenous Methamphetamine Self-Administration

Jessica A. Wilden

.css-o250i3{font-size:18px;font-family:Open Sans,sans-serif;line-height:21.6px;}Department of Neurosurgery,Department of Pharmacology,Toxicology,and Neuroscience,Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Neuroscience

Louisiana State University

A General Method for Evaluating Deep Brain Stimulation Effects on Intravenous Methamphetamine Self-Administration

Department of Neurosurgery,
Department of Pharmacology,
Toxicology,
and Neuroscience,
Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Neuroscience