ArticleBrain & spine2026
Mapping the healing brain: Longitudinal MRI volumetrics and outcomes across surgical techniques for primary brain abscesses.
Article in Brain & spine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- When to shunt and when to aspirate? Long-term outcomes from a large stereotactic cohort of cystic craniopharyngiomas.Brain & spine · 2026Article
- Decoding calvarial lesions: Contemporary neurosurgical management integrating radiological and histopathological features.Brain & spine · 2026Article
- Postoperative brain abscesses and infections after neurosurgery: Clinical characteristics, risk profiles, microbiological findings, and longitudinal DWI and ADC MRI analysis.Brain & spine · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: Primary intracerebral abscesses are rare but life-threatening infections requiring prompt surgical and antibiotic treatment. Comparative outcome data on neurosurgical techniques and radiological evolution remain limited. Research question: Do clinical outcomes and MRI-based volumetric changes differ between stereotactic aspiration, craniotomy, and burr-hole trepanation in adults and children with primary intracerebral abscesses? Material and methods: We retrospectively reviewed surgically treated patients between 2014 and 2024 at the LMU University Hospital in Munich. Abscess and perilesional edema volumes were quantified on serial MRI at clinically defined follow-up intervals. Clinical outcomes were assessed using standardized neurological and functional scales, and recurrence was further evaluated. Adult and pediatric subgroups were analyzed separately. Results: Sixty patients underwent stereotactic aspiration (53.3 %), craniotomy (36.7 %), or burr-hole trepanation (10.0 %). Mean abscess volume decreased from 18.8 cm Discussion and conclusion: All three surgical approaches achieved substantial and sustained reductions in abscess and edema volumes, with comparable neurological outcomes across age groups. Serial MRI volumetrics provide detailed insight into the temporal evolution of intracerebral abscesses and may inform postoperative monitoring and follow-up strategies for primary brain abscesses.
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