MicroRNA-21 has been proved to be associated with glioma proliferation and invasion; thus, we sought to clarify the clinical value of miR-21 expression in glioma tissues with WHO grade I to IV. One hundred and fifty-two pairs of human gliomas and non-neoplastic brain tissues were evaluated using real-time PCR. The association of miR-21 expression with clinicopathological factors or the prognosis of glioma patients was also analyzed. In this study, survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox’s proportional hazards model. MiR-21 was more greatly expressed in glioma tissues compared to the corresponding non-neoplastic brain tissues (P < 0.001). This observed high miR-21 expression was significantly associated with high pathological grades and the Karnofsky performance score of glioma patients. In addition, overall patient survival for those with low miR-21 expression was significantly longer than those patients with high miR-21 expression (P < 0.001). Moreover, multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that miR-21 might be an independent prognostic marker for glioma patient survival. Our data show that miR-21 may be a candidate independent marker for gliomas, especially those with high pathological grades, and this could also be a potential therapeutic target for molecular glioma therapy. The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1445749171109834 .

Background: Cerebral venous infarction (CVI) is a serious complication after meningioma resection. The risk factors of postoperative cerebral venous infarction after surgical resection of meningioma can be determined through large samples and this study can add evidence to the literature. Methods: The clinical and imaging data of 1127 patients with intracranial meningiomas who underwent resection in our hospital were retrospectively collected and analyzed. CVI was evaluated by postoperative imaging and clinical manifestations. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors associated with CVI. Results: Overall, 4.7% (53/1127) of patients experienced CVI after meningioma resection. Multivariate analysis revealed superficial meningioma, moderate to severe peritumoral edema, peritumoral critical vein and WHO grade II-III as independent predictors of a postoperative CVI. After timely intervention, the symptoms were clearly alleviated in one month, and the prognosis was good, but injury to key veins could cause irreversible neurological disorders. Conclusions: Intraoperative protection of veins is the primary way to prevent CVI. The present study identified several significant and independent risk factors for postoperative venous infarction, thereby enabling the identification of high-risk patients who require special attention during clinical and surgical management.