Cagatay Calikoglu

Objective: This study investigated the suitability of the collagen matrix as a dural graft in the repair of experimental spinal dura mater defects. Materials and Methods: In the study, 30 New Zealand white rabbits were used. The rabbits were divided into a study and control group. In both groups, following exact laminectomy (Th 10 and 11) in rabbits under the isoflorane anesthesia, a spinal dural defect 1x0.5 cm in size was formed. In the study group, the dura mater defect was covered with collagen matrix; in the control group, the excised dura was sutured back to its original position. At the end of the follow-up period, the rabbits were sacrificed. In all subjects, the vertebral colon was excised completely, and it was fixed in 10% formaldehyde solution. Sections 3 pm thick were taken from the specimens, stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and examined under a light microscope. The stained sections were evaluated under light microscopy with regard to the cellular inflammatory response, fibroblastic proliferation, foreign body reaction, and capsule formation. Results: The collagen matrix was completely absorbed, and it was easy to use since it did not require sutures. Foreign body reactions were minimal in the early period and were resolved entirely in the end. Inflammatory response against the collagen matrix was no greater than in the control group in which the dura was sutured primarily and then closed, eventually disappearing entirely, and no adhesion formation resulted. Collagen permits successful regeneration by combining with the dura mater. No capsule formation was observed in either group. Conclusion: This study shows that collagen is suitable for duraplastic procedures and that it may be a useful agent in patients in whom the dura cannot be closed primarily due to retraction, constriction, or excision. Cite this article as: Calikoglu C, Cakir M, Tuzun Y. A Histopathological Investigation of the Effectiveness of Collagen Matrix in the Repair of Experimental Spinal Dura Mater Defects. Eurasian J Med 2019; 51(2): 133-7.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of patients with lumbar disk hernia operated between 2012 January and 2017 August and to compare the differences between open discectomy (OD) and microdiscectomy (MD). Materials and Methods: Files of 519 patients who presented at our neurosurgical department with lumbar disk herniation were retrospectively reviewed and recorded. Preoperatively, all patients routinely underwent spinal lumbar magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and anteroposterior as well as lateral lumbar vertebrae X-rays. During the early postoperative period, there was no need for imaging. Surgical interventions were performed using the two currently accepted OD and MD methods. Results: We reviewed 519 patients with lumbar disk herniation who were operated in our clinic between 2012 and 2017. The mean age of 276 patients who underwent OD was 44.85±9.92 y, and that of the remaining 243 patients who underwent MD was 47.69±12.87 y. There was no difference in the demographic distributions of patients; levels of lumbar disk herniations; postoperative clinical outcomes; and long-term reoperation rates due to root injury, wound infection, dural tear, or the recurrence of lumbar disk herniation (p>0.05). The duration of operation was significantly shorter for OD (37.82±7.15 vs. 49.07±6.88 min; t=−18.184, p<0.001). Conclusion: The long-term results of patients who underwent OD and MD for lumbar disk herniation were similar. We believe that both methods can be safely used under appropriate conditions and surgical experience and that surgical experience has an impact on their outcomes. Cite this article as: Calikoglu C, Cakir M. Open Discectomy vs. Microdiscectomy: Results from 519 Patients Operated for Lumbar Disc Herniation. Eurasian J Med 2018; 50(3): 178-181.

Article: Should we use the serum vaspin level for the diagnosis and/or prognosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage? - Journal of Neurosurgical Sciences 2017 October;61(5):481-5 - Minerva Medica - Journals

Objective:To prospectively evaluate the ability of dual-energy CT (DECT), compared with MRI, to identify vertebral compression fractures in acute trauma patients.Methods:This institutional review board-approved study included 23 consecutive patients with 32 vertebral fractures who underwent both DECT and MRI of the spine between February 2014 and September 2014. A total of 209 vertebrae were evaluated for the presence of abnormal bone marrow attenuation on DECT and signal on MRI by five experienced radiologists. The specificity, sensitivity, predictive values and intraobserver and interobserver agreements were calculated.Results:MRI revealed a total of 47 vertebrae (22.4% of all vertebrae) and DECT revealed 44 vertebrae (21.0% of all vertebrae) with oedema. Using MRI as the reference standard, DECT had sensitivity, specificity, positive-predictive value, negative-predictive value and accuracy of 89.3, 98.7, 95.4, 96.9 and 96.6%, respectively. With respect to establishing the presence of oedema, the intero...

Cerebral ischemia is a cause of serious morbidity and mortality. Strategies that would protect cerebral tissue against ischemic injury are important. The present study aimed to evaluate effects of surgical and medical treatments, either alone or in combination, on infarction area in an experimental rat model of cerebral ischemia. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (n=30) were divided into 6 groups, each including 5 experimental animals. Cerebral ischemia was created by right common carotid artery occlusion (CCAO) under anesthesia. Decompressive craniectomy (DC) was performed in the relevant groups at the 12th hour following CCAO, whereas medical treatments were performed in the relevant groups at the 1st, 12th, and 24th hours following CCAO. After CCAO, the control group received 1 mL/kg physiological saline, hypertonic saline (HS) group received 3% hypertonic saline (1 mL/kg), and mannitol (MAN) group received 20% mannitol (1 g/kg). While only DC was performed following CCAO in the DC group, DC+HS group underwent DC together with hypertonic saline treatment and DC+MAN group underwent DC together with mannitol treatment. The rats were decapitated at the end of the 24th hour following ischemia. Cerebral sections were stained with 2% 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC). The ratio of infarction area to the total area of section was calculated as percentage. Mean infarction areas were 27.9% in the control group, 13.7% in the HS group, 15.1% in the MAN group, 10.6% in the DC group, 8.1% in the DC+HS group, and 9.7% in the DC+MAN group. Mean infarction areas were significantly lower in all groups than in the control group. While the mean infarction area did not differ between the HS and MAN groups, it was lower in the groups undergoing DC as compared to these two groups. The best outcome was observed in the DC+HS group. Both medical and surgical treatments were effective in decreasing cerebral ischemic infarction. There was no difference between medical treatments groups in terms of efficacy, whereas DC led to a substantial decrease in ischemic infarction volume as compared with the medical treatment groups. Combined treatment approaches performed to decrease infarction volume also resulted in favorable outcomes.

In this study we aimed to explore the effects of pregabalin on a traumatic brain injury model in rats. This study included 40 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats randomized into 4 groups, each of which contained equal numbers of animals. The control group had no head trauma and thus was not treated. The trauma group had head trauma but was not treated. The pregabalin group had no head trauma but was treated by pregabalin. The trauma + pregabalin group had head trauma treated with pregabalin. The biopsy samples taken from the study animals were histopathologically examined for the presence of edema, inflammation, and neuronal damage. All animals in the trauma group had edema, inflammation, and neuronal damage. Four subjects in the control group, 6 in the pregabalin group, and 4 in the trauma + pregabalin group had edema; inflammation was present in 1 subject in the control group, 3 subjects in the pregabalin group, and 3 subjects in the trauma + pregabalin group; neuronal damage existed in 1 subject in the control group, 1 subject in the pregabalin group, and 6 subjects in the trauma+pregabalin group. The trauma group had significantly higher edema and neuronal damage scores than the other groups. Similarly, inflammation was significantly more prevalent in the trauma group than the control and trauma+pregabalin groups. The results of the present study indicated anti-edema, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects of pregabalin in an experimental head trauma model in rats. Pregabalin may thus be beneficial in humans with acute TBI by relieving concomitant edema and inflammation.