Comments From the Editor Volume 21, No.4
Almost 15 years ago George P. Prigatano, PhD, introduced the BNI Screen for Higher Cerebral Functions to fill the need for a brief neuropsychological screening test for adults. Since then the test has proven useful for assessing cognitive and affective functioning, for making differential diagnoses, for distinguishing patients with complicated and uncomplicated traumatic brain injuries, and for predicting neurorehabilitation outcomes. As reported in a previous issue of this journal (volume 20, number 2, 2004) and elsewhere in the literature, the BNI Screen has been translated into numerous languages, and multiple cross-cultural studies have supported and extended its validity and reliability.
Children, however, are not miniature adults, and a need remained for a similar brief screening tool specifically designed to tap their neuropsychological functioning in an age-appropriate fashion. Previously in this journal, Dr. Prigatano presented the rationale and initial validation studies for a new screen designed specifically for children. In this issue, he and his coworkers present further studies examining the efficacy of the BNI Screen for Higher Cerebral Functions for School-Age Children (BNIS-C). The BNIS-C promises to be a useful clinical tool for assessing cognitive function in brain-injured children.
Rounding out this issue of the Barrow Quarterly are three reports of challenging clinical cases. Deshmukh et al. review three rare spinal meningiomas with an extradural component. In two patients, the tumors had intra- and extradural components while in one patient the tumor was purely extradural. Khan et al. report a 7-week-old infant with seizures who was found to have cerebral sinovenous thrombosis. As neuroimaging technology improves, this unusual condition may well be diagnosed more frequently. Early diagnosis and treatment are key to preventing the neurological deficits associated with this disease. Finally, Safavi-Abbasi et al. describe a woman with a hemangiopericytoma of the parasellar region that involved the sphenoid sinus and clivus and extended into the cavernous sinus. In all three reports, the authors discuss the pathology, clinical manifestations, and management of these uncommon conditions, discussions that we hope our readers find informative, interesting, and useful.
To help us continue to provide the Barrow Quarterly free of charge to neuroscience clinicians and researchers throughout the world, please consider sharing a tax-deductible donation in the enclosed selfaddressed envelope. May all our readers everywhere enjoy a safe and happy New Year!
Robert F. Spetzler, MD
Editor-in-Chief