Percivall Pott and the miners of Cornwall

Brain abscess: Current management

Brain abscess (BA) is defined as a focal infection within the brain parenchyma, which starts as a localized area of cerebritis, which is subsequently converted into a collection of pus within a well-vascularized capsule. BA must be differentiated from parameningeal infections, including epidural abscess and subdural empyema. The BA is a challenge for the neurosurgeon because it is needed good clinical, pharmacological, and surgical skills for providing good clinical outcomes and prognosis to BA patients. Considered an infrequent brain infection, BA could be a devastator entity that easily left the patient into dead. The aim of this work is to review the current concepts regarding epidemiology, pathophysiology, etiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of BA.

Chapter 14: landmarks of surgical neurology and the interplay of disciplines

The specialty of surgical neurology developed out of general surgery in the second half of the 19th century. It was aided by the development of general anesthetics, the advent of aseptic methods, and the emerging theory of cortical localization of function. This chapter examines the history of "modern" brain surgery, the leaders in this pursuit, and the landmarks that changed when and how these surgeries were conducted. It is stressed that the surgeries conducted by Broca, Macewen, Godlee, Horsley and others not only saved lives and ultimately created a new field, but also contributed to the basic sciences, fostering an improved understanding of the functional organization of the brain.