No abstract

Intelligence and memory functions were tested in 2 patients in whom the corpus callosum had been partially sectioned to remove intraventricular cysts or tumours and in 2 patients in whom similarly-located cysts or tumours had been removed transcortically. A patient with congenital absence of the corpus callosum was also tested. Callosal lesions per se did not appear to be responsible for memory deficits.

Three cases of recurrent subarachnoid bleeding are reported. The hemorrhages occurred at intervals of up to 10 years after posterior fossa craniotomy with closure using grafts of Silastic dural substitute. In one case, reexploration showed that the hemorrhage had arisen from a neomembrane formed at the site of the dural substitute; in the others, circumstantial evidence suggested a similar pathology.

Patients with adult onset otitis media with effusion are generally subjected to an examination and biopsy of the nasopharynx under a general anaesthetic to exclude a neoplasm of the post-nasal space. The likelihood in Caucasian countries of a tumour being detected has not been clearly defined. The clinical features of the 55 patients with nasopharyngeal malignancy presenting to the Glasgow hospitals since 1970 have been analysed, and the incidence of malignancy in all adults presenting with middle ear effusions has been assessed in order to define the association of the 2 conditions. The study confirmed that while an effusion is commonly associated with a nasopharyngeal tumour (33%), in only 2% was it the sole clinical manifestation at the initial consultation. In addition, adults with effusions, but without other symptoms and signs suggestive of a tumour, are unlikely to harbour a tumour, the incidence in this review being 0.4%. Therefore, an examination and biopsy of the nasopharynx under general anaesthesia is likely to give a very low yield of additional information in cases of isolated middle ear effusions in adults, and the cost effectiveness of the procedure should be questioned.

A description is given of an anomalous muscle arising from the flexor digitorum profundus tendon distal to the transverse carpal ligament, associated with a fibroma, which presented as trigger wrist.