The African Journal of Neurological Sciences
Vol 14 No.2, 1995
Letter to the Editor
A neurosurgical tale of two cities
A. ADELOYE - BLANTYRE - MALAWI
Code Number: NS95010
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The paper entitled The Surgery of Meningiomas: a review of 215 cases by
R.F. Ruberti, Nairobi, Kenya which appeared in a recent issue of The
African Journal of neurological Sciences, (volume 14, January 1995, pages
10 - 13) makes fascinating reading and represents an invaluable
contribution to our knowledge of meningiomas seen in our part of the world
of neurosurgery.
At a personal level, Professor Ruberti deserves special commendation for
his efforts and congratulations on forty years of sustained, active and
productive service in the demanding field of neurological surgery in Italy
and Africa. His present series compares favourably with those of giant past
masters of the neurosurgical art such as Cushing, Olivecrona and Zulch as
shown in his Tables.
The review is based on materials collected from fifteen years of practice
in Padua, Italy and of a quarter of a century in Nairobi, Kenya. Readers
will be better informed if the author can separate the Italian material
from that of Africa and subject both to the concise clear analysis he has
presented for his corporate experience from the cities of Padua and
Nairobi. That accomplished, his work can become an authoritative addition
to the literature and useful reference on meningiomas in Italy as well as
in Africa. Such a contribution will be particularly appreciated and
relevant in Africa, where hitherto the extant publications on meningiomas
are generally few and relatively old and some made up of inadequately
studied, isolated case reports (Adeloye, 1989).
EDITORIAL COMMENT
In reply to the letter to the Editor entitled "A neurosurgical tale of two
cities" by A. Adeloye, Blantyre, Malawi on a paper entitled "The surgery of
meningiomas: a review of 215 cases" by R.F. Ruberti, Nairobi, Kenya,
appeared in the African Journal of Neurological Sciences (1995: Vol. 14
pages 10-13), I would like to underline that my intention was to review
only the surgical management, and not the epidemiology, of the meningiomas
and possibly on a larger series of cases and this is the reason why I
summed up my cases of Padua, Italy with the ones of Nairobi, Kenya. In fact
the surgical management of the meningiomas may change in the hands of
different surgeons, but should not change for the same surgeon at different
latitudes.
For what concerns the epidemiology of the meningiomas and other tumours of
the Central Nervous System in Africa, this has been treated in my paper
"Tumours of the Central Nervous System in the African" appeared in the
Journal of Neurological Sciences, (1989: Vol. 8 pages 2429).
At personal level, I would like to thank very much Professor Adeloye for
the congratulations on forty years of sustained, active and productive
service in the demanding field of neurological surgery in Italy and Africa,
and comparing my work with that of the giants of the past: that's perhaps
and undeserved compliment, but we try to do our best.
Copyright 1995 Pan African Association of Neurological Sciences
