title: Immediate postoperative CT contrast enhancement following surgery of cerebral tumoral lesions.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Our goal was to evaluate the immediate postoperative contrast enhancement behavior of cerebral lesions and to gain further information about contrast enhancement in patients under general anesthesia.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the early postoperative period, CT scans with the without contrast medium were performed in 46 patients. The time interval between surgery and postoperative CT imaging ranged from 1 to 7.5 h (mean 4 h). Nineteen patients were under general anesthesia during CT investigation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the early postoperative period, contrast medium leakage into the tumor resection cavity was noted In 14 patients (30%). Another phenomenon that was observed was the appearance of a strong demarcation and distinct contrast of gray against white matter in 24 patients (52%). This characteristic, global contrast enhancement of the cerebral cortex, occurred in 17 of 19 patients (89%) investigated under general anesthesia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In immediate postoperative CT scans, contrast medium leakage due to extravasation of contrast medium into the tumor resection cavity can be detected early. Moreover, a global contrast enhancement of the cerebral cortex can be detected as a frequent pattern in patients investigated under general anesthesia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of Technology, Aachen, Germany.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Spetzger
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Thron
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gilsbach
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000768:Anesthesia, General; D001254:Astrocytoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000473:pathology; D003287:Contrast Media; D005119:Extravasation of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Materials / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D005910:Glioma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011856:Radiographic Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D012107:Research Design; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media