These results indicates that RFT under fluoroscopic image-guided cannulation of foramen ovale is a safe, effective, and reliable means of treating trigeminal neuralgia.
We report a case of pituitary apoplexy resulting in right internal carotid artery occlusion accompanied by hemiplegia and lethargy. A 43-yr-old man presented with a sudden onset of severe headache, visual disturbance and left hemiplegia. Investigations revealed a nodular mass, located in the sella and suprasellar portion and accompanied by compression of the optic chiasm. The mass compressed the bilateral cavernous sinuses, resulting in the obliteration of the cavernous portion of the right internal carotid artery. A border zone infarct in the right fronto-parietal region was found. Transsphenoidal tumor decompression following conservative therapy with fluid replacement and steroids was performed. Pathological examination revealed an almost completely infarcted pituitary adenoma. The patient's vision improved immediately after the decompression, and the motor weakness improved to grade IV+ within six months after the operation. Pituitary apoplexy resulting in internal carotid artery occlusion is rare. However, clinicians should be aware of the possibility and the appropriate management of such an occurrence.
It remains unclear whether patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) develop brain metastasis during or after standard therapy. We attempted to identify biological markers that predict brain metastasis, and investigated how to modulate expression of such markers. A case-control study of patients who were newly diagnosed with NSCLC and who had developed brain metastasis during follow-up was conducted between 2004 and 2009. These patients were compared with a control group of patients who had NSCLC but no evidence of brain metastasis. Immunohistochemical analysis of expression of Ki-67, p53, Bcl-2, Bax, vascular endothelial growth factor, epidermal growth factor receptor, caspase-3, and E-cadherin was conducted. The methylation status of the genes for O(6)-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase, tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP)-2, TIMP-3, and death-associated protein-kinase was also determined, by use of a methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction. A significantly increased risk of developing brain metastasis was associated with the presence of primary tumors with low E-cadherin expression in patients with NSCLC. We also investigated the effects of pioglitazone, a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ-activating drug, in tumor-bearing mouse models. We found that E-cadherin expression was proportional to pioglitazone exposure time. Interestingly, pioglitazone pretreatment before cancer cell inoculation prevented loss of E-cadherin expression and reduced expression of MMP9 and fibronectin, compared with the control group. E-cadherin expression could be a predictor of brain metastasis in patients with NSCLC. Preventive treatment with pioglitazone may be useful for modulating E-cadherin expression.
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