London Academic Publishing Ltd.: Arts & Humanities Journals
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Management of intracranial lesions during pregnancy
No full textIntroduction. Intracranial lesions during pregnancy are very rare conditions in obstetrical and neurosurgical practice. There is no precise protocol for the management of intracranial lesions during pregnancy yet. The aim of this study was to elaborate on pregnant patients with intracranial pathology in order to achieve better outcomes in the future.
Methods. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among patients presented with intracranial lesions at the Department of Neurosurgery at the National Academy of Medical Science, Bir Hospital. The data was collected. retrospectively from hospital data thirty patients with intracranial lesions during pregnancy from 2015 to 2024. We analyzed the treatment decisions and obstetrical and neurosurgical outcomes. All patients were evaluated with either computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, or both.
Results. Among the admitted patients, the youngest patient was 20 years and the oldest was 42 years, of which 2, 13 and 15 patients were diagnosed in the first, second and third trimesters, respectively. The distribution of neurosurgical problems was as follows: subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) n=6, cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) n=6, brain tumour n=5, trauma n=6, Intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) n=2, VP shunt n=2, tuberculoma n=1, neurocysticercosis n=1, and pituitary adenoma n=1. Fifteen patients (50%) underwent brain operation, eleven patients (36%) had conservative therapy, one patient died and four patients were terminated during pregnancy.
Conclusion. Multidisciplinary teams are not only required to successfully diagnose and treat intracranial lesions but also to safeguard both the mother and child
‘Cause Synthesis Never Still: Reading Charlie Johns’s “A History of Philosophy in 100 Pages”
No full textReading Charlie Johns’s History of Philosophy in 100 Pages is like stepping onto a street where Plato, Kant, Hegel, and Meillassoux walk beside you. The book refuses the stillness of catalogue entries, offering instead concepts as living “signatures”—each a doorway rather than a lid. Motion, speculative realism, and hermeneutical openness combine so that thinking is simultaneously historical, ethical, and cosmologically aware. Brevity becomes a vehicle for circulation: thought can be pocketed, read on a train, or left as a quiet provocation. Philosophy is restored as public, operative, and ethically alert, a Swiss army knife of ideas for anyone who wants to do things with thought.
Book ReviewCharlie Johns. 2025. A History of Philosophy in 100 Pages. UK: London Academic Publishing
Historical Revisionism as Trauma Revisited: And, Why Historical Revisionism Is Necessary Anyway
No full textHistorical revisionism is a feature of much history writing, because much history writing is done by members of dominant social groups or by historians unaware of, or consciously working to uphold, dominant historiographical (or social, cultural, religious, or political) paradigms. “Historical revisionism,” in this usage, means the occlusion of parts of the past, often traumas by which dominant historiographical paradigms are constructed and maintained. But this first act of historical revisionism necessitates a corrective, a second historical revisionism that overcomes the first, falsifying revision of historical truth. This second act of historical revisionism often entails revisiting occluded traumas. However, this is necessary, because history is a moral act, and historians are, ideally, moral actors
Intralesional abscess in choroid plexus carcinoma: A case report
No full textBackground: Choroid plexus carcinoma (CPC) is a rare, aggressive intraventricular tumour that predominantly affects young children. While CPC typically presents with hydrocephalus and mass effect, intratumoral abscess formation has not been previously documented.
Case Presentation: We report the case of a previously healthy 3-year-old female presenting with central facial hemiparesis and anisocoria. Imaging revealed a solid-cystic, contrast-enhancing lesion in the left ventricular atrium with spinal dissemination. Endoscopic-guided total resection via a parietal approach was performed, revealing a friable, hemorrhagic mass. Histopathology confirmed CPC with high proliferative index (Ki-67: 70%). Postoperative treatment followed the HEAD START III chemotherapy protocol without hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, followed by craniospinal radiotherapy. The patient remains recurrence-free after 12 months of follow-up.
Conclusion: This case highlights the successful management of a CPC complicated by an intratumoral abscess, an unprecedented presentation. Total surgical resection followed by multiagent chemotherapy and radiotherapy resulted in favourable early outcomes. Given CPC’s rarity and variable presentation, individualised, multidisciplinary approaches are essential
Erasing the Boundaries between the Past and the Present in Sam Shepard’s “True West” and “Buried Child”
No full textFrom a postmodern approach, this paper studies the notion of erasure in Shepard’s True West (1980) and Buried Child (1979), and it focuses on the impossibility of erasing the agrarian past, as well as the inability to ignore the postmodern present. To better understand the playwright’s redefinition of erasure, it is pertinent to first study the relationship between the past and the present in Buried Child. The author refers to Harold Bloom’s Anatomy of Influence to examine the way Shepard revisits the frontier and the Corn King myth. Realism, postmodernist features, simulacrum, surrealism, absurdity, Aristotelian tragedy, dramatic elements, and thematic concerns are deployed to explore the protagonists’ quest for self-definition, for finding out the characteristics of a true Westerner, and for disclosing that the true Western self is reformed through going beyond erasure and blurring the boundaries between temporal planes
The Social Construction of the Sexes in Post-War Germany
No full textMacroscopically, in the broader context, the emergence of women’s dominant role in society is attributed to the social reformations in the Sixties, not the reforms of the immediate post-war years. The normalisation of gender definitions foreshadowing people’s affairs was based on the principle of male power, whose agency was declared dogmatic and authoritarian within traditional societal norms (family, workplace, sexuality, the army, religion, or other personal beliefs). Gender inequalities in post-war society were evident, even though the ambivalence on gender hierarchies during the war did not persist. Women performed certain societal roles, mainly as canonised collaborative nuclear family figures. The impact of the war has proven robust not only on the art sector but also on everyday life and social activities that shape gender relations. At the end of the 1930s, the archetype of male soldiers, acting as the safeguard of the family and the homeland, was still lingering to create social figures
Incidence and severity of complications in postoperative spondylodiscitis after lumbar disc herniation surgery
No full textBackground: Postoperative spondylodiscitis is a rare but serious complication after lumbar disc herniation surgery, with incidence varying between 0.2–4%. It is mainly related to intraoperative contamination and host-related risk factors. This study aimed to evaluate demographic variables, lifestyle-related factors, and clinical outcomes in patients diagnosed with postoperative spondylodiscitis.Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study on 85 patients treated between 2018 and 2024 in a tertiary care centre. Clinical and paraclinical data were collected, including demographic characteristics, residence, lifestyle-related risk factors, discectomy level, complications, treatment type, motor deficit, and hospitalisation duration. Statistical analyses were performed using ?² and Student’s t-tests, with significance set at p < 0.05.Results: Complications were observed in 24 patients (28.2%), predominantly at the lumbar level. Age, sex, and residence showed no significant associations with complication status (p > 0.05). In contrast, lifestyle-related factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and poor hygiene were significantly correlated with complications (?² test, p < 0.05). Patients with complications had longer hospital stays (23.25 vs. 12.66 days, p < 0.05). Abscesses were the most frequent complication, followed by epiduritis. The presence of complications was significantly associated with motor deficits (p < 0.05).Conclusion: While demographic factors did not influence outcomes, lifestyle-related risk factors and surgical treatment were associated with increased complications and prolonged hospitalisation. Early identification of high-risk patients and aggressive management of abscess formation remain essential to reduce morbidity.Keywords: postoperative spondylodiscitis, lumbar disc herniation, spinal infection, complications, lifestyle risk factors, hospitalisation, motor deficit.Abbreviations: N = number of patients; p = p-value; r = Pearson correlation factor; SD = standard deviation; t-test = Student’s t-test; ?² = Chi-square test
A poignant odyssey of migrating distal end of ventriculoperitoneal shunt from inguinal canal to anal canal: An arduous situation
No full textVentriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt procedure is the most commonly performed and widely accepted treatment method for hydrocephalus of any aetiology. Unfortunately VP shunt is associated with varying complications beginning right from its ventricular end to the peritoneal end [1]. Here we present a challenging case of migrating distal end of VP shunt with its extrusion through the inguinal region, followed by per anal protrusion in the same patient. Scarcity of literature on sequential dual protrusion of the distal end of VP shunt in the same patient makes it a very uncommon case attracting our attention
Cost-effective 3D reconstruction of skull defects
No full textCranial defects following decompressive craniectomy or tumour resection can result in major cosmetic, protective, and neurological deficits, including the “syndrome of the trephined”. While patient-specific PEEK and titanium implants offer excellent anatomical and functional results, their high-cost limits accessibility in many healthcare systems. This study describes a cost-effective cranioplasty technique that uses in-house 3D-printed skull models or templates to pre-contour standard titanium mesh implants. We report three representative cases of large cranial defects secondary to tumour resection, complex infection with decompressive craniectomy, and severe traumatic brain injury. In each case, preoperative CT data were used to generate a patient-specific 3D model, which guided precise shaping of the implant and restoration of the native cranial curvature. This workflow combines the affordability and availability of conventional materials with the accuracy of computer-aided planning, minimises intraoperative modelling time, and reduces the need for expensive industrial patient-specific implants. Our early experience suggests that 3D-assisted contouring of standard implants is a robust and accessible strategy for restoring cranial integrity and improving cosmetic outcomes in resource-constrained settings
A vascular benign lesion in a perilous location: Case report
No full textBackground: Hemangioblastomas are vascular grade 1 tumours developing sporadically or, more rarely, in the context of Von Hippel-Lindau disease. Cystic brainstem hemangioblastomas are uncommon, with only a limited number of cases documented in the literature. Even though they are benign, their surgery is challenging in view of their eloquent location and vascularity. Thorough perioperative management is required.Case presentation: We report the case of a 47-year-old female patient with progressive weakness, difficulty in swallowing and ataxic gait. The brain MRI showed a cystic lesion located in the caudal part of the fourth ventricle and the dorsal medulla oblangata. We performed a subtotal excision of the tumour that was challenging due to its adherence to the floor of the 4th ventricle and its high vascularity. The pathology exam concluded to a hemangioblastoma. The patient presented a good evolution with no tumor progression in 6 months follow-up. Clinical discussion: The cystic brainstem hemangioblastoma is a rare, seemingly innocuous lesio,n but highly challenging to neurosurgeons. MRI is the investigation of choice, regularly sufficient for preoperative evaluation. Still, some authors recommend the performance of a cerebral angiography or a CTA preoperatively. In literature, many strategies, such as the use of preoperative embolization or radiosurgery, were described, aiming for a better-quality surgery and prognosis.Conclusion: Cystic brainstem hemangioblastoma is a scarce histologically benign but challenging lesion with surgical difficulties. Through our case and literature review, we concluded that surgery is the mainstay treatment for brainstem hemangioblastomas, mainly cystic ones and that a thorough study of its vascularization via angiography or CTA with a preoperative tumor embolization can help achieve a total tumor resection with good functional outcome and low mortality