The aim of the present study was to determine whether pharmaceutical preparations with pregabalin (PGB) as an active ingredient, which are widely prescribed by clinicians, exert toxic effects on human primary nucleus pulposus (NP) and annulus fibrosis (AF). Primary human cell cultures were obtained from intact (n=6) and degenerated (n=6) tissues resected from the two groups of patients. Different doses of PGB were applied to these cultures and cells were subjected to molecular analyses at 0, 24 and 48 h. Cell vitality, toxicity and proliferation were assessed using a spectrophotometer. The expression of chondroadherin (CHAD), a (member of the NP-specific protein family), hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) and type II collagen (COL2A1) was measured using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The results revealed that cell intensity increased in a time-dependent manner and cell vitality continued in the cultures without pharmaceuticals. Cell proliferation was suppressed in the PGB-treated cultures independent from the dose and duration of application. PGB was demonstrated to suppress the expression of CHAD and HIF-1α. In contrast, COL2A1 gene expression was not revealed in any experimental group. The present study utilized an in vitro model and the PGB active ingredient used herein may not be representative of clinical applications; however, the results demonstrated that PGB has a toxic effect on NP/AF cell cultures containing primary human intervertebral disc tissue. In summary, the use of pharmacological agents containing PGB may suppress the proliferation and differentiation of NP/AF cells and/or tissues, which should be considered when deciding on an appropriate treatment regime.

AIM:The surgical results for foramen magnum decompression (FMD) with and without duraplasty in Chiari Malformation type 1 (CM-1) were compared retrospectively. MATErIAL and METHods:Thirty-nine cases of CM-1 with and without syringomyelia (SM) were included. There were 18 patients in the nonduraplasty and 21 in the duraplasty group. Syringomyelia, tonsillar herniation (TH), preoperative symptom duration, and postoperative SM size were compared. rEsuLTs: No significant difference was found between improvement in the duraplasty group (81%) and the non-duraplasty group (61.1%). In cases whose symptom duration was 0-36 months, improvement in the duraplasty group (93%) was significantly better than in the nonduraplasty group (50%) (p<0.01). The rate of syrinx regression was 92.3% in the duraplasty group and 12.5% in the non-duraplasty group (p<0.05). In cases with SM, the improvement was 21.4% in the non-duraplasty group compared to 78.6% in the duraplasty group (p=0.056). In cases with TH greater than 10 mm, the improvement was 66.7% in the non-duraplasty group, whereas all six cases (100%) in the duraplasty group had improved. CoNCLusIoN:In SM associated cases, cases with TH greater than 10 mm, and whose symptom duration is less than 36 months, duraplasty is a more reliable choice despite a slightly higher rate of complications. BuLGuLAr: Duraplastili (%81) ve duraplastisiz grubun (%61,1) iyileşme oranları arasında anlamlı fark bulunmadı. Preoperatif semptom süresi 0-36 ay arasında olan olgularda; duraplastili grubun iyileşme oranı (%93) duraplastisiz gruba göre (%50) anlamlı oranda yüksekti (p<0.05). Sirenks boyutunda küçülme oranı duraplastili grupta % 92,3 iken duraplastisiz grupta % 12.5 idi (p<0.05). SM bulunan olgularda; duraplastili grubun iyileşme oranı % 78,6, duraplastisiz grubun iyileşme oranı ise % 21,4 idi (p=0.056). TH'un 10 mm'den fazla olduğu olgularda; duraplastisiz grubun iyileşme oranı % 66,7 iken, duraplastili 6 olgunun tamamı iyileşmişti (%100).soNuÇ: SM'li olgularda, TH'un 10 mm'den fazla olduğu olgularda ve semptom süresi 36 aydan kısa olan olgularda duraplasti hafif yüksek komplikasyon oranı olmakla birlikte daha iyi bir seçenek olarak düşünülmüştür.

AIm: To determine whether the Thoracolumbar Injury Classification and Severity Score (TLICS) and the Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen (AO) Spine Thoracolumbar Injury Classification System have any superiority to each other regarding the reliability of their recommendations in the surgical management of unstable thoracolumbar burst fractures. mATERIAl and mEThODS: Fifty-five consecutive patients with thoracolumbar burst fractures undergoing instrumentation between 2010 and 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. TLICS and AO systems were compared based on patients' American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) scores and they were analyzed for their safety and reliability.RESulTS: A total of 55 patients were studied. Neurological deficits were detected in 18 patients and the remaining 37 patients had normal neurological functions. All the patients with neurological deficits received >4 points according to TLICS. There were 14 patients with incomplete spinal cord injury and all of them received >4 points according to TLICS (p<0.01). On the other hand; 8 of these 14 patients received 4 points according to the AO system. None of the 37 patients without neurological deficit received <4 points of TLICS whereas 18 of these 37 patients received 3 AO points, to whom AO recommends conservative treatment despite the fact that they had unstable burst fractures (p<0.01). CONCluSION:Recommendations of TLICS might be more reliable than those of AO particularly for guiding the surgical management of unstable thoracolumbar burst fractures without neurological deficit. However, this conclusion needs to be verified with further multicenter prospective studies.

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) (Forestier syndrome) is a rheumatologic disease, the etiology of which is not exactly known. It is characterized by spinal osteophyte formations resulting from the ossification of the paravertebral ligaments and muscles. Anterior longitudinal ligament is the usual site of involvement and the frequency of the disease increases after the 5th decade. Lower cervical segments are the most frequently involved regions whereas the upper cervical involvement leading to dysphagia is very rare. In this report, a 77-year-old patient with Forestier syndrome in upper cervical region presenting with dysphagia was presented. Anterior cervical osteophyte resection was performed with no need for discectomy, fusion or stabilization. The patient showed a significant improvement in his all preoperative symptoms, and no recurrence was detected at 1-year follow-up.

Lipomatous meningiomas are extremely rare subtypes of benign meningiomas and are classified as metaplastic meningioma in the World Health Organization classification. We present a 77-year-old man presented with the history of a gradually intensifying headache for the last 3 months. A right frontoparietal mass was detected on his cranial magnetic resonance imaging. The patient was operated on via a right frontoparietal craniotomy, and histopathological diagnosis was lipomatous meningioma. Distinctive characteristics of lipomatous meningiomas were discussed with special emphasis to importance of immunohistochemical examinations, particularly for its differentiation from the tumors showing similar histology though having more aggressive character.

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Study DesignRetrospective cohort study.PurposeTo compare surgical results of foramen magnum decompression with and without duraplasty in Chiari malformation type 1 (CM-1) associated syringomyelia (SM).Overview of LiteratureThe optimal surgical treatment of CM-1 associated with SM is unclear.MethodsTwenty-five cases of CM-1 with SM were included. There were 12 patients (48%) in the non-duraplasty group and 13 patients (52%) in the duraplasty group. The rate of improvement, state of postoperative SM size, amount of tonsillar herniation, preoperative symptom duration, complications and reoperation rates were analysed.ResultsThe rate of clinical improvement was significantly higher with duraplasty (84.6%) than without (33.3%, p <0.05). The rate of postoperative syrinx regression was significantly higher in the duraplasty group (84.6%) than in the non-duraplasty group (33.3%, p <0.05). One case in the duraplasty group needed a reoperation compared with five cases in the non-duraplasty group (p =0.059).ConclusionsDuraplasty is superior to non-duraplasty in CM-1 associated with SM despite a slightly higher complication rate.

This study has been presented as an oral presentation at the 20 th Turkish Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Congress on March, 2019.