Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31903354›Full record

ArticleAsian journal of neurosurgery

Pediatric Brainstem Gliomas: An Institutional Experience.

Altaf Ali Laghari, Mirza Zain Baig, Ehsan Bari, Aneela Darbar, Naureen Mushtaq, Umm E Hani Abdullah, Daniyal Aziz Khan

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Asian journal of neurosurgery. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
0.1field-weighted citation impact, top 43% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Diagnostic challenges and treatment barriers in the management of diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma in low- and lower-middle-income countries: a systematic review.Child's nervous system : ChNS : official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Altaf Ali LaghariDepartment of Neurosurgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Mirza Zain BaigRudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute, Danbury, Connecticut, USA.
Ehsan BariDepartment of Neurosurgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Aneela DarbarDepartment of Neurosurgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Naureen MushtaqDepartment of Pediatrics, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Umm E Hani AbdullahDepartment of Neurosurgery, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Daniyal Aziz KhanMedical College, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Aga Khan University Hospital · PKBiomedical Research Institute · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe aim of this study was to analyze the clinical profiles and outcomes of pediatric brainstem gliomas treated at our institute. METHODOLOGY: We reviewed the files of 18 pediatric age group patients diagnosed with brainstem glioma at our institution. The following variables were recorded: age, sex, duration of symptoms, date of diagnosis, main clinical symptoms, Karnofsky performance status score, magnetic resonance imaging findings, histopathology findings, details of the treatment given, disease progression, and date of mortality/last follow-up. This data were then transferred to SPSS version 23 which was used for further analysis.

resultsThe mean age of our cohort was 8.6 years (range 3-15). There were 11 (61.1%) males and 7 (38.9%) females. There were 16 (88.9%) patients with diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPGs), 1 (5.6%) patients with exophytic medullary gliomas, and 1 (5.6%) patient with midbrain/tectal glioma. Mean overall survival (OS) was 9.7 months. Mean progression-free survival (PFS) was 6.3 months. All patients with DIPG eventually passed away from their disease. Patients with DIPG who received radiotherapy had a longer OS and PFS than those who did not (9.8 and 6 months vs. 3.4 and 2.4 months). Diagnostic latency >1 month was found to have a statistically significant longer progression-free interval.

conclusionDIPGs in the pediatric population have a poor prognosis. Radiotherapy serves to increase survival time but is not curative.

Indexed as

Pediatric brainstem gliomasradiotherapysurvival

Identifiers

PMID31903354
PMCPMC6896630
OpenAlexW2989847269

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.