Article
Clinical Neurology
Jiali Liu, Tao Yu, Jinfeng Wu, Yali Pan, Zheng Tan, Ruobing Liu, Xueyuan Wang, Liankun Ren, Liang Wang
Summary: Electrical stimulation of the anterior nucleus of thalamus (ANT) can improve working memory precision by modulating hippocampal gamma activity.Increased gamma power in the pre-stimulus and retrieval period predicts the improvement of working memory precision judgements.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Johanna Petra Szabo, Daniel Fabo, Nora Peto, Anna Sakovics, Robert Bodizs
Summary: Increased attention has been given to the structure and function of the anterior nucleus of the thalamus (ANT) in epilepsy treatment. The efficacy of the treatment varies among patients and the predictors of better outcomes are limited. Recent studies suggest a possible role of ANT in sleep processes, although the mechanisms are still unclear. This review aims to summarize the evidence on ANT activity during non-REM and REM sleep, and explore shared characteristics with sleep processes and ANT-related functions during wakefulness.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Cuiping Xu, Lei Qi, Xueyuan Wang, Frederic L. W. V. J. Schaper, Di Wu, Tao Yu, Xiaoming Yan, Guangyuan Jin, Qiao Wang, Xiaopeng Wang, Xinqi Huang, Yuke Wang, Yuanhong Chen, Jinghui Liu, Yuping Wang, Andreas Horn, Robert S. Fisher, Liankun Ren
Summary: This study aimed to investigate whether the functional connectivity between the ANT-DBS sites and the seizure foci is associated with effective seizure control in refractory epilepsy.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Linda J. Dalic, Aaron E. L. Warren, Kristian J. Bulluss, Wesley Thevathasan, Annie Roten, Leonid Churilov, John S. Archer
Summary: In this study, deep brain stimulation to the centromedian thalamic nucleus (CM-DBS) was found to reduce electrographic seizures in patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), with 50% of participants experiencing a >= 50% reduction in diary-recorded seizures after 3 months of stimulation.
ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
William L. Schuerman, Kirill Nourski, Ariane E. Rhone, Matthew A. Howard, Edward F. Chang, Matthew K. Leonard
Summary: Vagus nerve stimulation is increasingly used to treat various diseases and disorders, but the acute effects on human cortical neurophysiology are not fully understood. Research shows that VNS causes subtle changes in neural activity across broad cortical networks, which can vary significantly depending on stimulation parameters and modalities among individuals.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Cameron P. Beaudreault, Carrie R. Muh, Alexandria Naftchi, Eris Spirollari, Ankita Das, Sima Vazquez, Vishad V. Sukul, Philip J. Overby, Michael E. Tobias, Patricia E. McGoldrick, Steven M. Wolf
Summary: This retrospective study evaluated the use of RNS System depth leads implanted in the thalamus to detect electrographic seizures. The results showed that thalamic leads, whether bilateral or unilateral, were able to successfully detect and terminate epileptiform activity. Thalamic nuclei are a promising target for seizure detection and stimulation with the RNS System, providing a reversible therapeutic option for patients who are not candidates for surgical resection or ablation.
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Arthur Cukiert, Cristine Mella Cukiert, Jose Augusto Burattini, Pedro Paulo Mariani
Summary: The study investigated the outcomes of hippocampal deep brain stimulation (Hip-DBS) in patients with refractory temporal lobe epilepsy. The findings showed that Hip-DBS significantly reduced seizure frequency in patients with both focal aware and focal with impaired awareness seizures, suggesting it as a promising therapeutic option for patients who are not suitable for resective surgery.
Review
Neurosciences
Andrew J. Zillgitt, M. Ayman Haykal, Ahmad Chehab, Michael D. Staudt
Summary: Idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) is a common type of epilepsy, and traditional medications are not always effective. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) and responsive neurostimulation (RNS) may be potential surgical treatments for IGE, although there is limited data available. Promising results have been reported in published studies.
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Juan Luis Alcala-Zermeno, Nicholas M. Gregg, Elaine C. Wirrell, Matt Stead, Gregory A. Worrell, Jamie J. Van Gompel, Brian Nils Lundstrom
Summary: The study reported on 16 children and adults with drug resistant epilepsy who underwent deep brain stimulation targeting the centromedian and anterior nucleus of the thalamus. Results showed a significant reduction in seizure frequency, improved life satisfaction, and relative safety of the DBS treatment.
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Ting-Ting Du, Ying-Chuan Chen, Guan-Yu Zhu, De-Feng Liu, Yu-Ye Liu, Tian-Shuo Yuan, Xin Zhang, Jian-Guo Zhang
Summary: ATN-DBS significantly reduces seizure frequency, decreases the number of ectopic granule cells, and reduces MFS scores in the hippocampus through down-regulation of the cAMP/PKA signaling pathway and Akt phosphorylation.
CHINESE MEDICAL JOURNAL
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Farah Chamaa, Batoul Darwish, Rami Arnaout, Ziad Nahas, Elie D. Al-Chaer, Nayef E. Saade, Wassim Abou-Kheir
Summary: The study demonstrates that stimulating the anterior nucleus of the thalamus can enhance adult hippocampal neurogenesis and improve spatial memory in rats. However, administering dexamethasone prior to and simultaneously with the stimulation can diminish these effects.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Brin E. Freund, Elena Greco, Lela Okromelidze, Julio Mendez, William O. Tatum IV, Sanjeet S. Grewal, Erik H. Middlebrooks
Summary: This study aims to test the hypothesis that the proximity of deep brain stimulator contacts to the anterior thalamic nucleus-mammillothalamic tract (ANT-MMT) junction determines responsiveness to treatment with ANT deep brain stimulation (DBS). The results support the hypothesis that proximity to the ANT alone does not correlate with seizure reduction in ANT DBS, whereas proximity to the ANT-MMT junction does. These findings highlight the importance of direct targeting and imaging-informed programming in ANT DBS.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSURGERY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Simon Oxenford, Jan Roediger, Clemens Neudorfer, Luka Milosevic, Christopher Guttler, Philipp Spindler, Peter Vajkoczy, Wolf-Julian Neumann, Andrea Kuehn, Andreas Horn
Summary: This study presents a tool that integrates multiple resources for real-time visualization of implant trajectories. The tool is validated through its application in a cohort of DBS patients and single-use cases on the real-time platform. The results confirm the correspondence between neuroimaging and electrophysiological recordings, demonstrating the functionality of the tool.
Article
Clinical Neurology
David J. Segar, Nalini Tata, Maya Harary, Michael T. Hayes, G. Rees Cosgrove
Summary: This study presents the initial experience of using intraoperative MRI (iMRI) to perform asleep deep brain stimulation (DBS), demonstrating high target accuracy and reduced operative time. The results show that the technically accurate lead placement rate was 98% and the mean radial error was 0.50 mm. The procedure time decreased with increasing institutional and surgeon experience, with a mean duration of 3.65 hours.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSURGERY
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Erik H. Middlebrooks, Ayushi Jain, Lela Okromelidze, Chen Lin, Erin M. Westerhold, Chad A. O'Steen, Anthony L. Ritaccio, Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, William O. Tatum, Sanjeet S. Grewal
Summary: The study showed that high-frequency stimulation (HFS) and low-frequency stimulation (LFS) in deep brain stimulation (DBS) for epilepsy treatment produce significant differences in local and downstream network effects, particularly displaying opposing effects within the limbic network and default mode network (DMN).
Article
Clinical Neurology
Ali Karadag, Mahmut Camlar, Omer Furkan Turkis, Nijat Bayramli, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Necmettin Tanriover
Summary: In this study, a surgical simulation of the endonasal approach similar to the corridor of the reverse third ventriculostomy (ERTV) was performed on cadaveric heads. The results showed that ERTV allowed safe and adequate access to the third ventricle, providing a wide surgical field.
JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGICAL SURGERY PART B-SKULL BASE
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
T. Kumar, G. M. Virador, P. Brahmbhatt, A. A. Bhatt, E. H. Middlebrooks, A. Desai, A. Agarwal, P. Vibhute, V. Gupta
Summary: The trochlear nerve can be reliably identified and assessed using an ultra-high-resolution 7T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocol. At least two segments of the trochlear nerve were successfully identified in 100% of cases, with visibility rates of 65% for the brainstem origin, 93% for the cisternal segment, 100% for the trochlear groove, and 74% for the posterior wall of the cavernous sinus.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF NEURORADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
E. H. Middlebrooks, R. A. Popple, E. Greco, L. Okromelidze, H. C. Walker, D. A. Lakhani, A. R. Anderson, E. M. Thomas, H. D. Deshpande, B. A. McCullough, N. P. Stover, V. W. Sung, A. P. Nicholas, D. G. Standaert, T. Yacoubian, M. N. Dean, J. A. Roper, S. S. Grewal, M. T. Holland, J. N. Bentley, B. L. Guthrie, M. Bredel
Summary: Resting-state fMRI and MR tractography can predict tremor outcomes and serve as biomarkers for stereotactic radiosurgical thalamotomy. Structural and functional connectivity correlate with tremor improvement and can guide treatment.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF NEURORADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Baibing Chen, Sanjeet S. Grewal, Erik H. Middlebrooks, William O. Tatum, Anthony L. Ritaccio, Joseph I. Sirven, Brin E. Freund, Anteneh M. Feyissa
Summary: Magnetic resonance-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy (MRLiTT) has gained popularity for treating temporal lobe epilepsy. This pilot study investigated the predictive value of pre- and post-MRLiTT epileptiform discharges (EDs) on intraoperative electrocorticography (iECoG) for seizure outcomes in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE). The study found that a reduction in ED frequency during MRLiTT may potentially predict seizure outcomes. Larger prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings and evaluate the utility of iECoG during MRLiTT.
CLINICAL NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Editorial Material
Clinical Neurology
Aafreen Khan, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Pradeep Javarayee, William O. Tatum, Sofia S. Sanchez S. Bolurate, Sanjeet S. Grewal, Anteneh M. Feyissa
Summary: Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is a congenital developmental malformation and has been found to have a substantial genetic contribution. DEPDC5 variations have been identified as a causative gene mutation in familial focal epilepsies associated with FCD. The case presented demonstrates the successful treatment of a patient with a genetic drug-resistant focal epilepsy using MR-guided laser interstitial thermal ablation.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Jamie J. Van Gompel, David B. Burkholder, Jonathon J. Parker, Sangeet S. Grewal, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Vance T. Lehman, Kai J. Miller, Eva C. Alden, Timothy J. Kaufmann
NEUROSURGERY CLINICS OF NORTH AMERICA
(2023)
Letter
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Dhairya A. Lakhani, Xiangzhi Zhou, Shengzhen Tao, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Xueying Zhao, Mengsu Zeng
Article
Oncology
Garrett Ni, Carlos D. Pinheiro-Neto, Ehiremen Iyoha, Jamie J. Van Gompel, Michael J. Link, Maria Peris-Celda, Eric J. Moore, Janalee K. Stokken, Mauricio Gamez, Garret Choby
Summary: This study examines patient outcomes after recurrence of esthesioneuroblastoma and describes patterns of salvage therapeutic interventions. The 5-year overall survival after recurrence was found to be 63% and the 5-year progression-free survival was 56%. The time to develop a secondary recurrence was shorter than the time to develop the first recurrence, and patients with secondary recurrences were older at the time of their primary tumor diagnosis.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Mustafa Eren Yuncu, Ali Karadag, Sarper Polat, Mahmut Camlar, Berra Bilgin, Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Fusun Ozer, Necmettin Tanriover
Summary: This study compared the advantages and disadvantages of the retrosigmoid suprameatal tubercle (RSMTA) and anterior subtemporal transpetrosal (ASTA) surgical approaches for ventral brainstem and petroclival regions. It evaluated the surgical corridors and 3-dimensional microsurgical anatomy of the related structures. The results showed that ASTA allowed for a greater extent of safely resected bone and provided a larger surgical view to various structures, while RSMTA offered a larger surgical view through cranial nerve V mobilization.
OPERATIVE NEUROSURGERY
(2023)
Article
Neuroimaging
Rahul B. Singh, Ahmed K. Ahmed, Prasanna Vibhute, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Sukhwinder J. S. Sandhu
Summary: Transient global amnesia (TGA) is a condition characterized by temporary memory loss, traditionally believed to have no long-term imaging findings. However, a recent study using 7 Tesla MRI revealed residual lesions and volume loss in a patient with TGA eight months after the acute episode. This challenges the notion of TGA as fully reversible and calls for further research on its potential long-term imaging and neurocognitive sequelae.
NEURORADIOLOGY JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Neuroimaging
Dhairya A. Lakhani, Xiangzhi Zhou, Shengzhen Tao, Erin M. Westerhold, Benjamin H. Eidelman, Prasanna Vibhute, Sukhwinder Johnny Singh Sandhu, Erik H. Middlebrooks
Summary: Transient ischemic attack (TIA) has become an important focus of research due to the increased risk of subsequent stroke. However, distinguishing TIA from nonvascular clinical mimics is challenging, necessitating improved biomarkers. Recent studies have shown that ultra-high field (UHF) 7T MRI is superior to lower-field MRI in neuroimaging, particularly in epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. Our case series demonstrates that 7T MRI can detect intracortical microhemorrhages and microinfarctions in patients with TIA, which cannot be seen with lower-field MRI. This discovery may improve our understanding of cerebrovascular abnormalities in TIA and help differentiate TIA from other conditions.
NEURORADIOLOGY JOURNAL
(2023)
Review
Neuroimaging
George K. Vilanilam, Neethu Gopal, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Josephine F. Huang, Alok A. Bhatt
Summary: There are various lesions in the head and neck that can compress nerves and vessels, and they may go unnoticed without relevant medical history or suspicion from radiologists. Identifying these lesions often requires a high level of suspicion and precise imaging. MRI with a high-resolution T2-weighted sequence is particularly valuable in the initial evaluation. This review aims to discuss the radiological features of common and uncommon compressive lesions in the head and neck, which can be broadly grouped into vascular, osseous, and miscellaneous etiologies.
NEURORADIOLOGY JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Simona Serioli, Mariagrazia Nizzola, Pedro Plou, Alessandro De Bonis, Jenna Meyer, Luciano C. P. C. Leonel, Andrea A. Tooley, Lilly H. Wagner, Elizabeth A. Bradley, Jamie J. Van Gompel, Maria Elena Benini, Iacopo Dallan, Maria Peris-Celda
Summary: This study aims to provide a detailed description of the anatomy to understand the potential and limitations of transorbital approaches (TOAs). Measurements of the orbit region and surrounding areas were performed on CT scans and dry skulls, and dissection was done on specimens to illustrate the TOA. Three clinical cases were presented to highlight the surgical applications.
Review
Clinical Neurology
Manuela Aramburu Berckemeyer, Paola Suarez-Meade, Maria Fernanda Villamonte Carcelen, Mariel Dyer Ricci, William P. Cheshire, Daniel M. Trifiletti, Erik H. Middlebrooks, Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, Sanjeet S. Grewal
Summary: Glossopharyngeal neuralgia (GPN) is a neurological condition characterized by paroxysmal, stabbing-like pain. Pharmacological treatment is the first line, but some patients require surgical intervention. A systematic review showed that microvascular decompression (MVD) alone achieved immediate pain relief in 85% of patients and long-term relief in 65-90% of patients. Rhizotomy alone provided instant relief in 85-100% of patients, but long-term relief was lower. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) had promising results in pain reduction, but further studies are needed.
NEUROSURGICAL REVIEW
(2023)
Meeting Abstract
Oncology
N. K. Ankrah, E. M. Thomas, M. Bredel, E. H. Middlebrooks, H. Walker, J. B. Fiveash, B. L. Guthrie, R. A. Popple, J. Roper, S. Brinkerhoff
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RADIATION ONCOLOGY BIOLOGY PHYSICS
(2023)
