Surgery to remove abnormal growths of the brain, peripheral nervous system or the spine or any disorder can be tricky because the brain and the skull that shields it are complex areas. In the old days, open surgery was the only way to access the brain or spinal cord. But, with the invention of laparoscopy, keyhole surgery to treat neurological issues is gaining ground.

What is Neuroendoscopy? 
Neuroendoscopy is a surgical procedure that is favoured by doctors and patients alike because it is minimally invasive.
Before the surgery, you will be administered general anaesthesia so that you will be unconscious during the entire duration. During the surgery, the surgeon will drill a minute hole into your skull just above the eyebrows. You skull also has two natural openings. That is why the surgeon may make use of the nose or the mouth to access the region that needs to be operated upon.

Neuroendoscopy is useful because -

  It lets the surgeon reach regions that are not accessible with open surgery
  The tumour can be removed without any damage being done to surrounding tissues

An endoscope is a delicate device with a high-resolution camera mounted on it. There is an eyepiece on the other end. The device is also fitted with a light. When it is inserted into the brain, it lights up the passage and the eyepiece allows the surgeon to take a look inside. The camera sends a live feed of the path it is traversing and this guides the surgeon. When the tumour is reached, it is gently removed with other surgical instruments that too were inserted through the cavities or the drilled hole.

Benefits of Neuroscopy -
There are several advantages of relying on laparoscopy -

  The patient endures less pain
  Fewer chances of infection
  Faster recovery
  Very little scarring of tissues

Which Disorders call for Neuroendoscopy?
Any of the following disorders can be put to rights with a neuroendoscopic surgery -

  Pituitary tumours
  Rathke s cleft cysts
  Pineal area tumours
  Ventricular tumours
  Skull base tumours
  Brain inflammation triggered by an infection
  Chordomas
  Cerebrospinal fluid fistulas
  Trigeminal neuralgia
  Cerebral aneurysm

After Surgery-
Once you undergo the neuroendoscopic surgery, you will have to be rehabilitated so that your condition can be monitored round the clock. Neuroendoscopy is a state of the art clean and efficient surgery that is beneficial to both surgeons as well as the patients.

Know More About Neuroendoscopy And Its Uses!

Acoustic neuroma is the development of noncancerous and slow-growing tumors on the main, vestibular nerve that travels from the inner ear to the brain, connecting the two organs. They are also known as vestibular schwannoma, as it arises from Schwann cells covering the vestibular nerve. It rarely grows rapidly or attains a large enough size that can press against the brain and interfere with the vital functions of the brain. Since the tumor is benign, the patient can be assured that it won t spread to the other parts of the body; however, they can grow large enough to disrupt the normal function of the body.

The pressure from the acoustic neuroma on the main nerve can cause loss of hearing, a constant ringing in the ear and unsteadiness. As per a report published by the Acoustic Neuroma Association, 1 out of every 50,000 people suffers from this condition.

Risk factors for acoustic neuroma
Acoustic neuroma does not have quite as many risk factors. The only established risk factor for acoustic neuroma is having a parent who suffers from the rare genetic disorder neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2). However, having said that, neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2) accounts for only 5 percent of the reported cases. In most of the cases, it has been found that the tumors appear spontaneously without any indication of a family member having this disease or any medical history of the same.

The development of noncancerous tumors on the ear nerves as well as other nerves in the body is scientifically supported as a characteristic indication of neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2). Neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2) is also termed as an autosomal dominant disorder, which indicates that the mutated gene can pass from just one parent. Each of the children has a fifty-fifty chance of inheriting the disease.

However, scientists and doctors have failed to identify why specific people get these tumors. They have reached a generic conclusion about the risk factors, which may include:

Loud noises near the ear.
A parathyroid neuroma, which is a similar benign tumor of the thyroid.
A chance of exposure to low levels of radiation in the childhood.
How to diagnose the risk factors for acoustic neuroma?
If you are experiencing loss of hearing or other neurological symptoms, try to keep track of them. Later on, mention them to your doctor for a proper diagnosis. A detailed history of the symptoms will help your doctor. Your doctor will perform a hearing test to check whether you have an acoustic neuroma. Then the doctor may perform a brainstem auditory evoked response tests along with an electronystagmography to detect any changes in eye movement, caused due to the inner ear. MRI and CT scans are also quite common diagnoses methods for acoustic neuroma.

Acoustic Neuroma - What Are The Risk Factors?

Neurological disorders may creep in due to many reasons. It may be due to degenerative diseases, accidents, other health conditions, birth defects or genetics. The most common form of disorder occurs due to non-functional brain cells in some parts, and loss of myelin sheath in neurons, which protects the nerve signals in their complete transfer from origin to destination. These losses are irreparable, but further degeneration can be avoided with Ayurveda. Panchakarma, the branch of Ayurveda, which deals with detoxification of the body and mind, specially helps. Over a period of time, it can bring back the lost sensation in nerves. Yoga, pranayama and Ayurvedic treatments lead to recovery and relief to a huge extent.

Important facts about Panchakarma
There are 3 important steps in Panchakarma, which are followed one after another to get the result. The main objective of Panchakarma is to detoxify the body. Virechanam, vamanam, sneha vasti, nasyam and kashaya vasti are the 5 folds in Panchakarma.

Poorvakarma or preparing the body, followed by Abhyangam or massage, followed by Elakizhi or herbal paste massage, and finally podikizhi, or steam bathing makes the body ready for receiving further treatments.
Njavara Kizhi is the special treatment done in Panchakarma where the body is given a rice bolus massage to improve the joint and neuro functions.
What is Njavara Kizhi?
Njavara is a variety of rice, which is specially used for Ayurvedic treatment and massages. In this treatment the rice is made into a pudding by boiling it with milk. This pudding is then made into boluses. The boluses are filled in muslin cloth, and then using these muslin bolus dabs, the whole body of the patient is massaged. This full-body massage has excellent effects on neurological and joint functions. The deep tissues within the body are rejuvenated. The treatment is carried on for 45 minutes to 60 minutes by therapists or experts. Another form of the treatment requires the rice to be made into a paste, and then the paste is applied all over the body. But this is more preferred for beautification.

Other effective therapies
Siro Vasti, Kati Vasti, Ela Kizhi and Nasyam are all different forms of Panchakarma treatment, which detoxify the body and mind and rejuvenate the body and nerve functions. But these treatments cannot be conducted on the body on your own. You need a masseur who must be a specialist in Ayurveda to do this for you. Hence contacting Ayurvedic clinics, doctors or experts would be the best to start the treatment.

Neurological Disorder - How Panchkarma Therapies Can Help?

Acoustic neuroma is a benign tumor that occurs in the primary nerve between the brain and the ear. The tumor progresses very slowly and can influence your balance and hearing. In certain cases, if the tumor becomes very large, then it may also impair vital functions of the body.
Symptoms-
The symptoms of acoustic neuroma tend to develop when the tumor starts to press on the nerve and its adjoining branches. The symptoms of this disorder are  
You may experience hearing loss on one side which might worsen gradually.
You may have problems in balancing yourself.
A continuous ringing sound in the ears.
Persistent dizziness.
If the tumor is large and presses on the nearby nerves, then you may experience numbness of the facial muscles.
In some cases, it may impair the vital functions of the body.
This disorder is caused by a malfunctioning gene. There is no documented reason as to why the gene malfunctions.
The treatment options for this disorder are  
Constant Monitoring: These tumors tend to grow very slowly but might spurt in some cases. In order to prevent damage to your body, they need to be monitored on a regular basis. Imaging tests are recommended on a periodic basis to determine the growth of the tumor.
Radiosurgery: Stereotactic radiosurgery is done to treat acoustic neuroma that is small in size. In this surgery, radiation is directed at the tumor without creating any incision. It is done to limit the growth of the tumor and preserve your hearing.
Surgery: The tumor can be removed by using surgical procedures. It involves administering general anesthesia, followed by removing the tumor through an incision on the skull or the inner ear. Surgery is used to remove the tumor and preserve your hearing abilities. 

Acoustic Neuroma - Everything You Need to Know

Study of the brain has fascinated specialists all over the globe since time immemorial. The brain being the most vital organ for survival and coordination is perhaps the most complex of them all too. This has led to a limited understanding of its working in spite of the available advanced technology. However, with the advent of techniques for diagnosis and treatment, therapeutic strategies are evolving. This is a major step towards rendering Neurosurgery safer than ever in the history of mankind.

Neurosurgery through the 20th Century-

During the beginning of the 20th century, Neurosurgery was considered as a specialty. The clinical-neurologist would draw conclusions related to lesions in the brain through neurological examination and clinical history. It enabled diagnosis of vascular lesions, spinal disorders, and brain tumors. During the second and third decades of the 20th century, vascular pathologies and brain tumors could be diagnosed indirectly through techniques like angiography, ventriculography, and pneumoencephalography. But since the operative techniques were too crude and the lack of skilled professionals were rampant, there were high rates of morbidity and mortality due to neurological conditions. Generally, after diagnosing the nature of brain lesion and its site, surgery was performed with inadequate maintenance and control of intracranial pressure and through not too sophisticated surgical instruments.

During the fifth and sixth decades of the 20th century, chemotherapy and radiation treatment came into the picture for treating malignant brain tumors, thereby reducing mortality to a good extent.

During the seventh decade of the 20th century, Computed Tomography (CT) scan provided a better understanding of the location of lesions in the brain which slightly substantiated the earlier techniques. Then, the procedures for cerebrospinal fluid diversion significantly improved management of intracranial pressure during surgery.

It was only during the last decade of the 20th century that the Neurology saw a giant progressive leap through the introduction of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and powerful high magnification microscopes. Combined with Neuroanesthesia and Intracranial Pressure Management, this aided surgeons to work on a relaxed brain. This promoted safe removal of the brain tumor and better management of vascular lesions. Moreover, the understanding of micro-surgical anatomy improved drastically, leading to a boost in confidence levels of the micro-neurosurgeons performing the operation.

Neurosurgery in the 21st Century-

The 21st century is actually a revolutionary era that uses powerful computers in almost all the fields possible. Computer-based applications such as Neuro-imaging, Neuronavigation, Intra-operative Neuro-monitoring, and Neuro-modulation are now used in standard neurosurgical practice as a part of the routine. Extremely powerful CT scans and MRIs are used for diagnosis before surgery. The advent of nanotechnology and its application in Neurosurgery is doing great and has a promising future ahead based on the current study of scenarios. Moreover, there is a possibility of most of the Neurosurgical procedures becoming minimally invasive. Frameless Stereotaxy is another technique that helps in locating the exact position of the tumor, which further helps the neurosurgeon in navigating with great precision the very sensitive, high-risk areas of the brain. Such techniques, to a great extent, have lowered mortality and morbidity, lessened the rate of recovery, and chances of infection related to Neurosurgery.

Take Away-

A number of techniques for diagnosis and precise location of the tumor in the brain have made Neurosurgery much safer today, due to advancement in science and technology, than it ever had been in the history of mankind.

Advancements In Neurosurgery - Know How Safe It Is!

How Physiotherapy Can Help with Neurological Disorders

Neurological disorders are problems with any one or a combination of the central nervous system or any of its peripheral systems such as cranial nerves, neuromuscular junctions, and the autonomic nervous systems among others.

Some extreme examples of neurological disorders are:

- Dementia
- Alzheimer's disease
- Parkinson's disease
- Epilepsy
- Disorders brought on by strokes
- Multiple sclerosis and others

What is physiotherapy and how can it help?

Physiotherapy is a form of treatment where practitioners use physical forms of treatment such as massages, exercises, heat treatment and other controlled forms of external stimuli to treat physical disorders.

This method of treatment can be very effective in correcting neurological disorders.

Some of the physiotherapy techniques, which can be implemented to help patients, are as follows:

Electrical Stimulation: This method is commonly used to treat muscular problems, especially incurred after an accident or any other form of injury. In this method, controlled electric stimulation is given to specific nerve areas over the skin to stimulate them.

Heat treatment: This method involves applying heat to parts of the body such as joints or muscles where there is nerve or muscular damage. This treatment is especially effective for muscle related problems.

Ice or cold treatment: Vertically opposite to the principle of heat treatment, ice or cold treatment is used to contract muscles within the body. This is especially effective where inflammation needs to be controlled.

Manual therapy: Possibly the most common form of physiotherapy, this method employs massages, pressure points, stretching and hands on strengthening exercises and helps regularize nerve impulses to areas where they have been affected.



How Physiotherapy Can Help with Neurological Disorders

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