Harvey Cushing's surgical treatment of a pediatric patient with an intraventricular glioma

Courtney Pendleton, Bowen Jiang, Hadie Adams, Peter Burger, Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background/Aims: The combination of inadequate technology and incomplete nomenclature systems created challenges for early neurosurgeons, and contributed to the dismal prognosis for brain tumors, particularly within the pediatric population. Methods: Following IRB approval, and by the courtesy of the Alan Mason Chesney Archives, we reviewed the Johns Hopkins Hospital surgical files from 1896 to 1912. A single case of a pediatric patient with an intraventricular glioma was selected for further review. Results: Here we report the case of a 10-year-old girl who presented to the Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1907, with a 7-year history of subtle symptoms of increased intracranial pressure, secondary to a tumor. Dr. Harvey Cushing operated upon her, and during surgical intervention resected a large parenchymal and intraventricular glioma. Conclusions: High-grade gliomas are rare occurrences in pediatric patients, with intraventricular gliomas described in only a handful of cases. Although advances in neuroimaging, hemostasis and understanding of the cerebrospinal fluid system have allowed neurosurgeons to resect intraventricular gliomas more safely, the surgical approaches in use today are still fraught with challenges. Here we describe a case of attempted resection of an intraventricular glioma in a pediatric patient, which predates the earliest published report of intraventricular gliomas by 30 years.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)475-479
Number of pages5
JournalPediatric Neurosurgery
Volume46
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2011

Keywords

  • Brain tumor
  • Glioma
  • Pediatric brain tumor

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
  • Surgery
  • Clinical Neurology

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