Live Neurosurgery Webcast: Specialists to Perform Pial Synangiosis on Patient with Moyamoya Disease

June 1, 2010

Boston, Mass. -- On Tuesday, June 8 at 10:00 AM EDT, neurosurgeons at Children's Hospital Boston performed a pial synangiosis on an eight-year-old patient with moyamoya disease during a live Webcast. The Webcast is part of Children's ongoing effort to bring its cutting-edge care and technology to specialists and referring physicians around the world and allow consumers to see the latest and most innovative medical treatments available.

Moyamoya disease occurs when the internal carotid arteries at the base of the brain become progressively narrowed and shut off blood supply to the brain. During this narrowing process, small blood vessels form a network of "side roads" to supply blood to the oxygen-starved areas of the brain once served by the narrowed arteries. Moyamoya gets its name from the Japanese word for "puff of smoke," which describes the appearance of these small blood vessels on an arteriogram of the brain's blood vessels.

R. Michael Scott, MD, chief of Neurosurgery, will perform the pial synangiosis, a surgical procedure he devised 25 years ago for treating moyamoya patients. "The operation is designed to take advantage of the tendency of the brains of children with moyamoya disease to attract new blood vessels from any source that is made available by the surgeon," says Dr. Scott.

The procedure involves relocating a healthy blood vessel, the superficial temporal artery, from the scalp to the surface of the brain. To accomplish this, surgeons open a window of bone beneath the artery and then sew tissues connected to the arterial wall directly to the brain surface with sutures one third the width of a human hair. The procedure does not require severing or even the temporary blocking any scalp or brain artery--a significant advantage, especially in young children.

Following the operation, most moyamoya patients will stay in the hospital for 4 to 5 days, and then return in about 6 weeks so their surgeon can check on their progress. At one year following surgery, an angiogram is usually done to confirm that new blood vessels are growing where they are needed. Annual MRI follow-up is usually sufficient after that point. In addition to a live stream of the procedure, the Web cast will highlight the multidisciplinary care required for children with moyamoya disease and present the team approach to pediatric stroke and cerebrovascular diseases adopted by Children's.

Neurosurgeon Edward R. Smith, MD, will moderate the Web cast, introducing Dr. Scott and his O.R. team. Several colleagues will provide commentary throughout the Web cast, including but not limited to:

Nicole Ullrich, MD, PhD, Director of Neuro-Oncology, on the symptoms and diagnosis of moyamoya

Richard L. Robertson, Jr., MD, Acting Radiologist-in-Chief or Darren B. Orbach, MD, PhD, Director, Neurointerventional Radiology, on diagnosing moyamoya disease

Michael J. Rivkin, MD, Director of Children's Neurology Inpatient Service, on the care of cerebrovascular diseases and stroke at Children's and the importance of early referral

Anesthesiologists Sulpicio G. Soriano, II, MD, or Craig D. McClain, MD, on the role of anesthesia before, during and after pial synangiosis

Michael L. McManus, MD, MPH, Chief of Pediatrics and Executive Director of Pediatric Services at South Shore Hospital and Senior Associate in Critical Care, will discuss the post-surgical care

Celiane M. Rey-Casserly, PhD, Director of the Neuropsychology Program, on the neuropsychological management of patients with moyamoya and other cerebrovascular diseases

a former patient who had a pial synangiosis to treat moyamoya associated with his sickle cell disease

To sign up for a reminder or to view the Webcast on June 8 at 10:00 AM EST, visit http://www.orlive.com/childrenshospitalboston/videos/treating-moyamoya-disease

For more information:
http://giving.childrenshospital.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=1499

http://www.childrenshospital.org/chnews/05-01-06/philanthropic_dynamo.html

Contact:
Jamie Newton
Children's Hospital Boston
617-919-3110
james.newton@childrens.harvard.edu

Children's Hospital Boston is home to the world's largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center, where its discoveries have benefited both children and adults since 1869. More than 500 scientists, including eight members of the National Academy of Sciences, 13 members of the Institute of Medicine and 12 members of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute comprise Children's research community. Founded as a 20-bed hospital for children, Children's Hospital Boston today is a 396-bed comprehensive center for pediatric and adolescent health care grounded in the values of excellence in patient care and sensitivity to the complex needs and diversity of children and families. Children's also is the primary pediatric teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. For more information about the hospital and its research visit: www.childrenshospital.org/newsroom.

-###-