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Objective: Despite pituitary neuroendocrine tumor (PitNET) being extra‐axial tumors without direct damage to brain tissue, patients with PitNET exhibit neuropsychological impairments. However, it remains unclear whether there are neuropsychological differences between PitNET and intra‐axial tumors that directly destroy the brain parenchyma. This prospective study aims to clarify this distinction to inform decision‐making for intracranial tumors of diverse origins. Methods: A total of 146 patients with PitNET, 74 patients with glioma representing intra‐axial tumors, and 52 age‐, sex‐, and education‐matched healthy controls were recruited. All patients received standard treatment and postoperative rehabilitation. Clinical data were meticulously collected, and neuropsychological tests were administered to all participants both before and 3 months after surgery. Results: Both PitNET and glioma patients experience the dual burden of cognitive and affective deficits. However, the feature of these deficits differs substantially. In PitNET patients, the deficits are relatively mild and focal, whereas in glioma patients, they are severe and extensive. Specifically, PitNET patients exhibit deficits in memory, anxiety, and negative affect. In contrast, glioma patients display deficits in executive function, attention, anxiety, positive/negative affect, and empathy. Notably, except for persistent memory deficits, the majority of neuropsychological scores declines in PitNET patients are restorable and can reach improvement within a short period after standard surgical therapy and perioperative management. Conversely, glioma patients not only fail to show improvements but also demonstrate worsening in terms of general cognition and memory postoperatively. Interpretation: As an extra‐axial tumor, PitNET may exhibit distinctive cognitive and affective functioning compared to intra‐axial tumors, highlighting the need for specific treatment approaches for PitNET patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adult posterior fossa ependymomas (PF-EPN) with preoperative cerebrospinal metastases are extremely rare. Only 3 cases have been reported in previous literature. A case of a 32-year-old male patient complained of headaches for three months. Pure tone audiometry showed a slight decrease in bilateral hearing. Auditory evoked potential indicated that the hearing on the left was slightly weaker than that on the right. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a primary tumor arising within the fourth ventricle and metastasizing to bilateral cerebellopontine angle (CPA), the third ventricle, the left lateral ventricle, T1, L1-2 and L5. A gross total resection (GTR) was performed on the lesion located in the left CPA. The histological examination showed a papillary ependymoma (WHO grade II). Immunohistochemical staining for H3K27me3 showed that nuclear positivity in more than 80% of cells. No NF2 mutation was observed. No progression was found during a 24-month follow-up. Our data indicate that preoperative multiple metastases in adult PF-EPN are extremely rare. This kind of disease usually has a low WHO grade and a favorable prognosis. GTR should be achieved when feasible and patients need a long-term follow-up with MRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The concept of equivalent scales of dual-porosity coal structures was put forward. • A permeability model in the complete stress-strain process of coal was established. • A new method for measuring the permeability in coal seams was put forward. Coal is a complex dual-porosity porous medium that consists of both fractures and coal matrices containing pores. The gas seepage characteristics in coals are closely related to the coal matrix-fracture structures. However, the elements that compose the dual-porosity structure of coal (i.e., the coal matrix and the fracture) are often simplified to geometries with regular shapes in theoretical research investigations due to the complexity of coal structures. Therefore, the geometrical size of the simplified geometries can be regarded as the equivalent scale of the coal matrices and the fractures. The equivalent scale characteristics can optimize the properties of the complex fracture system in coal bodies. Based on this, a simplified permeability evolution model in the complete stress-strain process of coals was proposed. The new model takes into account the impacts of the equivalent scale characteristics of the coal matrix-fracture structures, the effective stress and the matrix sorption induced strain on the evolution laws of coal permeability. Then, a simple and convenient method for measuring the permeability in coal seams based on the new permeability evolution model was put forward, and the reliability of the new method was verified by comparing its results with field test data. This research enriches the theory of gas seepage in coal seams and lays a foundation for studying the evolution mechanism of coal permeability during plastic deformation occurs in coal bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, we evaluate the characteristics of cognitive and affective function in patients with somatotroph adenomas (SAs) that secrete excess growth hormone and the effects of surgical intervention. We conducted a prospective longitudinal study, recruiting 27 patients with SAs, 29 patients with nonfunctional pituitary adenomas (NFPAs) as the lesion control group, and 24 healthy participants as the healthy controls (HCs). These three groups were matched for sex, age, and years of education. We performed multidimensional cognitive function and neuropsychological assessments 1–2 days before endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal surgery and at 3 months postoperatively. The Mini-mental state examination, Montreal cognitive assessment, Frontal assessment battery, Trail making test, and Digit span test were used to assess multidimensional cognitive function, including general intelligence, frontal lobe function, executive function, and memory. The Hamilton anxiety scale, Beck depression inventory, and Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scale were used for the neuropsychological assessment, including anxiety, depressed mood, and positive and negative emotions. Compared with the HCs, the patients with SAs showed poor performance in the memory (P = 0.009) and anxiety (P = 0.013) assessments. However, no statistically significant difference was observed between patients with SAs and NFPAs for either cognitive function or effective performance. Moreover, patients with SAs did not show significant changes in cognition and affective behavior after surgery. In contrast, patients with NFPAs displayed significant improvements in memory (P = 0.015), executive function (P < 0.001), and anxiety mood (P = 0.001) performance postoperatively. Patients with SAs showed specific cognitive deficits and abnormal moods, which might be attributed to the overproduction of growth hormone. However, surgical intervention had a limited effect on improving the impaired cognitive function and abnormal moods in patients with SAs at short-term follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]