37 patients with intractable idiopathic epistaxis were treated with superselective embolisation between 1995 and 1999. A total of 40 embolisations was performed, including three procedures for recurrence. The embolic material was gelatin sponge in 27 procedures, microcoils in 9 and both gelatin sponge and microcoils in 4. Immediate cessation of nasal bleeding was obtained in all patients after embolisation. Recurrent epistaxis occurred in 2 (5.4%) of the 37 patients within 7 days after initial embolisation, giving a short-term success rate of 94.6%. The long-term follow-up ranged from 1-51 months (mean 21.6 months). Late re-bleeding occurred in two patients, giving a long-term success rate of 94.6%. Two patients underwent re-embolisation; it was necessary to embolise the ipsilateral facial artery and/or the contralateral internal maxillary as well as the ipsilateral maxillary artery. Although the overall complication rate was 45.0%, no major complications occurred. Superselective embolisation with gelatin sponge is an effective and safe treatment technique for intractable idiopathic epistaxis.

No abstract

The authors describe a 32-year-old male in whom herpes zoster of the left upper extremity was complicated by the development of cervical myelitis. Contrast enhancement and abnormal signal intensity on T1 and T2 weighted images was seen at C1-C6 levels in the spinal cord and medulla. There was also slight enlargement of the cord at these levels. On serial MR imaging the degree of enhancement changed from marked to none with corresponding clinical improvement.

The width of the temporal stem was significantly narrower in patients with FTD than in those with AD and controls. The described measurements can easily be obtained and may be useful for the diagnosis of FTD.