Outcome of surgical treatment of highgrade intramedullary astrocytomas
Background: Intramedullary astrocytomas account for about 1% of all CNS tumors and 6–8% of spinal cord tumors. The vast majority of intramedullary astrocytomas are slowgrowing lesions. Objectives: The goal in this study was to review a series of patients who underwent surgical removal of intramedul...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University of Baghdad/ Al-Kindy College of Medicine
2011-12-01
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| Series: | مجله كليه طب الكندي |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://jkmc.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/MEDICAL/article/view/646 |
| Summary: | Background: Intramedullary astrocytomas
account for about 1% of all CNS tumors and
6–8% of spinal cord tumors. The vast majority
of intramedullary astrocytomas are slowgrowing
lesions.
Objectives: The goal in this study was to
review a series of patients who underwent
surgical removal of intramedullary high-grade
astrocytomas, focusing on the functional
outcome and the effect of multimodality
treatment on the survival of patients with high
grade intramedullary astrocytoma.
Methods: Between June 1999 and June 2004,
22 patients underwent removal of
intramedullary high-grade astrocytomas in four
neurosurgical hospital in Baghdad/ Iraq
(Neurosurgical hospital, Al Shaheed Adnan
Hospital for Surgical Speeialticsa, Nursing
Home Hospital Lesions were located in the
cervical segment of the spinal cord in 12
patients, and patients.
Results: Histological examinations showed
10 Grade III astrocytomas and 12
glioblastomas. Only 2 of the 22 high-grade
astrocytomas could be completely removed. The
clinical postoperative status worsened in
14 patients (63.6%), was unchanged in seven
patients (31.8%), and there was one case of
intraoperative death (4.5%). None of the 22
patients showed improvement in their
neurological status postoperatively. In this series,
excluding the one intra-operative death, all
patients died of the progression of the
malignancy.
Conclusions: Surgical treatment did not
ameliorate the postoperative neurological status;
instead, in the majority of cases, it prompted a
worsening of the deficit. Radiotherapy and
chemotherapy have a little influence on the
length of survival. In this series, multimodality
treatment of intramedullary high-grade
astrocytomas has been shown to increase length
of survival without improving the neurological
status.
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| ISSN: | 1810-9543 2521-4365 |