The treatment results of ten patients with spinal hemangioblastoma including clinical, radiological and surgical considerations are reported. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is considered to be the radiological method of choice. With its superior imaging qualities MRI was able to clearly demonstrate the exact anatomical location of the tumor nidus as well as the extent and location of the accompanying space-occupying intramedullary cysts. The tumors could be completely removed in all ten patients using microsurgical techniques. The additional application of the CO2-laser has added significantly to the atraumatic and total tumor extirpation. In none of the patients postoperative worsening occurred. In two patients with long lasting symptoms the pre- and postoperative neurological status was unchanged. Minor sensory sequelae persisted in another two patients. In 6 patients the preoperative neurological deficits including significant motor and sensory disturbances resolved completely. It is concluded that microsurgical removal guided by MRI imaging and aided by the application of laser energy is the method of choice in the treatment of spinal hemangioblastomas.

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In a retrospective study covering a period of 8 years and 403 surgically treated patients the results of microsurgical aneurysm treatment were compared between two groups. One group received surgical treatment within 72 h and the second were treated surgically after this time interval. The data indicated that patients receiving delayed surgery had a better outcome at 6 months as compared to patients receiving immediate surgical intervention. The location of the aneurysm and the preoperative neurological status imparted the most significant impact on the subsequent outcome and on the incidence of rebleeding. High risk patients with poor neurological status on admission seemed to have a considerable chance of gaining satisfactory functional recovery, especially with a more delayed surgical approach. Despite its superior results delayed surgery was burdened with a rebleeding rate and an incidence of ischemic deficits due to cerebral vasospasm twice as high as in patients receiving early surgery. The implications of these results on surgical timing are discussed and it is concluded that despite the fact that late surgery yields better results than early surgery, the considerable reduction of recurrent hemorrhage and additional possibility of aggressive treatment of incipient vasospasm makes early surgery a promising alternative for the treatment of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

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