Heterotopic, non-functioning masses of nervous tissue in spina bifida cystica

Heterotopic, non-functioning masses of nervous tissue in spina bifida cystica.

The operative specimens from 160 cases of spina bifida cystica were examined in detail. In seven cases the sac contained nervous tissue visible to the naked eye, the removal of which produced no clinical disability. The form taken by this non-functioning, heterotopic nervous tissue is described.

Studies in Spina Bifida Cystica

Nicolai Tulp, the physician whose features are immortalized in Rembrandt's painting 'The School of Anatomy', first suggested the name 'spina bifida' (Tulpius, 1652), though the condition was known to Hippocrates, and the mediaeval Arab physicians are said (Denuce, 1906) to have specifically recognized the absence of the spinous processes in the affected area. Ruysch (1691) distinguished between...

Spina bifida cystica.

Selection for treatment in spina bifida cystica.

This paper discusses (1) the mortality in 295 patients with myelomeningocele born 1961-9, (2) the "quality of life" of 88 surviving patients born 1961-5, and (3) their implications for selection for treatment in spina bifida cystica. Evidence is presented that high neurological levels, the presence of severe hydrocephalus, especially if present at birth, meningitis and ventriculitis, and gross ...

Bacterial Meningitis in Spina Bifida Cystica

Meningitis is a well-known complication of meningomyelocele, but the problems of its diagnosis and treatment have so far received scant attention. Some children with meningomyelocele have a small neurological deficit and no hydrocephalus. Others with hydrocephalus may benefit from modern treatment and grow up to lead normal lives. The problem of meningitis in meningomyelocele is, therefore, wor...