Recovery of circadian melatonin rhythm after a melatonin holiday in daytime haemodialysis patients on long-term exogenous melatonin.
Authors: Sparla S, Koch B, Bosma R, Nagtegaal E
Abstract
The effects of exogenous melatonin on sleep diminish after its long-term use in haemodialysis patients. Our aim was to determine whether melatonin levels accumulate after chronic (at least three months) use of exogenous melatonin, 5 mg daily, and whether discontinuation of this treatment improves endogenous melatonin production and improves the circadian sleep-wake rhythm. In this case series, stable haemodialysis patients discontinued their chronic exogenous melatonin usage for seven days and melatonin concentrations in saliva were analysed. The pri...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Multiple sclerosis and non-dystrophic myotonias: do they share a common pathophysiology?
Authors: Portaro S, Naro A, Russo M, Bramanti P, Lauria P, D'Aleo G, La Rosa G, Bramanti A, Calabrò RS
Abstract
Some patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) complain of symptoms, such as myokymia, myotonia, spasms, and stiffness, which have been demonstrated to be due to a concurrent non-dystrophic myotonia, i.e. myotonia congenita or paramyotonia congenita. Beyond the known casual association between MS and non-dystrophic myotonia, a channelopathy representing a primary trait of MS rather than an epiphenomenon of demyelization (i.e., an acquired channelopathy) may exist. Indeed, the finding of MS patients ...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
From paper to informatics: the Post Soft Care-App, an easy-to-use and fast tool to help therapists identify unmet needs in stroke patients.
Authors: De Bartolo D, Morone G, Lupo A, Aloise F, Baricich A, Di Francesco D, Calderone C, Cisari C, Verdecchia G, Sandrini G, Pistarini C, Antonucci G, Smania N, Paolucci S, Iosa M
Abstract
Even after rehabilitation, post stroke patients remain disabled. The Post Stroke Checklist (PSC) was developed to highlight unmet needs of community-dwelling stroke patients. The present study set out to validate Post Soft Care-App, designed to administer the PSC using smartphones and tablets, in order to monitor unmet needs in chronic patients. Fifty-three patients and fifteen physiotherapists were enrolled. The ther...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Automated mechanical peripheral stimulation and postural control in subjects with Parkinson's disease and freezing of gait: a randomized controlled trial.
This study aimed to investigate the effects of AMPS on postural control in individuals with PD and FOG. Thirty-three subjects participated in this randomized controlled trial. Participants were allocated to two groups: AMPS and AMPS SHAM. Subjects underwent eight sessions of real (AMPS) or placebo AMPS (AMPS SHAM) once every three/four days. Postural control was assessed by means of posturography before the first and after the eighth session of treatment. We did not find positive effects of AMPS on center of pressure parameters. Thus, it seems that AMPS has no positive effect in terms of improving static postural control i...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Is bupropion useful in the treatment of post-stroke thalamic apathy? A case report and considerations.
Authors: Aragona B, De Luca R, Piccolo A, Le Cause M, Destro M, Casella C, Filoni S, Calabrò RS
Abstract
Post-stroke apathy is considered to be one of the clinical consequences of lesions affecting the structures of the prefrontal cortex, basal ganglia, thalamus and limbic system. However, there is no current consensus on the treatment of post-stroke apathy, which mainly depends on the underlying etiology and comorbidities. A 62-year-old man, affected by hemorrhagic stroke in the left thalamus, presented with mood depression, anhedonia, hyporexia and marked apathy. The patient underwent clinical evaluatio...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
TIA patients with higher ABCD3-I scores are prone to a higher incidence of intracranial stenosis, unstable carotid plaques and multiple-vessel involvement.
Authors: Yu Q, Miao W, Han J
Abstract
The ABCD3-I criteria have proved to be effective for use in regular clinical practice to assist in transient ischemic attack (TIA) risk stratification and treatment. In this prospective study we aimed to explore the relationships between risk stratification and arterial stenosis location, carotid plaque morphology and vessel involvement in 90 TIA patients, stratifying risk by ABCD3-I scores. Clinical variables such as total cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, glycosylated hemoglobin, homocysteine and high-sensitive C-reactive protein levels ...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Is there a correlation between urological and cardiovascular dysfunction in Parkinson's disease?
Authors: Brusa L, Rocchi C, Ponzo V, Stanzione P, Finazzi E, Attanasio A
Abstract
It is well established that non-motor symptoms are a core feature of Parkinson's disease (PD). A dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system seems to be present in PD, supporting the coexistence of urological and cardiovascular non-motor features. We evaluated whether bladder dysfunctions in patients with PD are linked to blood pressure dysregulation. Twenty-eight mild PD patients, previously submitted to a urodynamic evaluation, underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure and heart rate monitoring to allow assessment of th...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Cross-cultural adaptation and validation in the Italian population of the wolf motor function test in patients with stroke.
The objective of this study was to translate and culturally adapt the WMFT for the Italian population (WMFT-IT) and examine its reliability and validity in Italian post-stroke adults with chronic hemiplegia or hemiparesis. The original scale was translated into Italian and culturally adapted in accordance with international guidelines. Its internal consistency and stability were examined using the Cronbach's alpha (α) coefficient and the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), respectively. Its concurrent validity was evaluated using the Pearson's correlation coefficient to compare the instrument with the Italian versi...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
The dawn of algometry: Paolo Mantegazza's research on pain.
Authors: Cani V
Abstract
By the 1860s, Paolo Mantegazza was a professor of general pathology at the University of Pavia, where he had graduated in medicine in 1854. There, he founded Italy's first laboratory of experimental pathology and did his first research on pain, the subject of various communications presented to the Istituto Lombardo in Milan. In 1880, Mantegazza published Physiology of Pain, one of the several "physiologies" (of pleasure, of love, of hatred, of woman) that he wrote during his career. In this book, a testament to his scientific versatility, experimental observations supplemented his...
Source: Functional Neurology - January 23, 2019 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Errata corrige Functional Neurology 2018;33:2 Article: Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 492 patients in a vegetative state in 29 Italian rehabilitation units. What about outcome?
Authors:
Abstract
PMID: 30457962 [PubMed] (Source: Functional Neurology)
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Chronic stroke: an oxymoron or a challenge for rehabilitation?
Authors: Baricich A, Carda S
Abstract
PMID: 30457963 [PubMed - in process] (Source: Functional Neurology)
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Effects of a nutraceutical combination in patients with chronic lumbosacral radicular pain.
Authors: Geroin C, Tamburin S, Pagano G, Gandolfi M, Tinazzi M
Abstract
Drugs used for the treatment of chronic lumbosacral radicular pain (LRP) may have frequent adverse effects leading to medication withdrawal. The use of add-on nutraceuticals, which have no side effects, may therefore play a role in LRP treatment. We performed a six-week, single-center, open label prospective uncontrolled clinical study to evaluate the effect of a nutraceutical combination (Noxiall®) used as an add-on therapy in patients with chronic LRP. Fifteen patients were treated with Noxiall® twice a day for 10 consecutive days,...
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Effects on balance skills and patient compliance of biofeedback training with inertial measurement units and exergaming in subacute stroke: a pilot randomized controlled trial.
Authors: Lupo A, Cinnera AM, Pucello A, Iosa M, Coiro P, Personeni S, Gimigliano F, Iolascon G, Paolucci S, Morone G
Abstract
Stroke patients have reduced balance and postural control that limits their activities of daily living and participation in social life. Recently, many exergaming systems based on video-biofeedback have been developed for balance training in neurological conditions, however their efficacy remains to be proven. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects on balance skills and patient compliance of biofeedback training based on inertial measurement units and exergaming in sub...
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
The required coefficient of friction in Parkinson's disease: people with freezing of gait.
Authors: Rozin Kleiner AF, Cubillos DM, Pinto C, Salazar AP, Marchese RR, Barros RML, Galli M, Pagnussat AS
Abstract
The required coefficient of friction (RCOF) is frequently reported in the literature as an indicator of slip propensity, a consequence of the collisional aspect of legged locomotion. Little is known about the RCOF in pathological gait. Therefore, this study aimed to quantify the RCOF in subjects with Parkinson's disease (PD) and freezing of gait (FOG) during the OFF-pharma phase, and to investigate the interplay between RCOF parameters and ankle kinematic and kinetic gait variables. Fourteen...
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
Non-pharmacological interventions for agitation/aggressive behaviour in patients with dementia: a randomized controlled crossover trial.
Authors: Dimitriou TD, Verykouki E, Papatriantafyllou J, Konsta A, Kazis D, Tsolaki M
Abstract
Agitation/aggressive behaviour is a common behavioural and psychological symptom in people with dementia (PwD), occurring with a frequency of between 13-50.4% according to recent studies, and the rate increases as the severity of cognitive decline increases. The burden on caregivers is considerable. This trial is a randomized controlled crossover trial conducted in Greece. The following measures were used: the Mini-Mental State Examination, Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination Revised, Geriatric Depression Scale, ...
Source: Functional Neurology - November 22, 2018 Category: Neurology Tags: Funct Neurol Source Type: research
