Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Mar 2010
Bladder dysfunction in hereditary spastic paraplegia: what to expect?
Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) comprises a group of rare neurodegenerative disorders characterised by progressive spasticity and hyperreflexia of the legs. Neurogenic bladder dysfunction is a well recognised problem in patients with HSP but it has not yet been described systematically in the literature. The aim of this study was to provide an evidential overview of the ways in which urinary dysfunction presents in HSP. ⋯ To our knowledge, this work is the first systematic and disease oriented overview of neurogenic bladder disturbances in patients with HSP. Our results may be useful to the clinicians who work with HSP patients, allowing them to make appropriate screening and management decisions.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Mar 2010
The SCAN rule: a clinical rule to reduce CT misdiagnosis of intracerebral haemorrhage in minor stroke.
Many patients with minor stroke are referred to outpatient clinics and are not scanned immediately. A clinical rule is needed to identify patients who are likely to have intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) and require urgent brain imaging and patients who can safely start antiplatelet agents before scanning. ⋯ The SCAN rule appears to be specific and sensitive at identifying ICH in an independent cohort of patients with minor stroke, although further independent validations are needed.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Mar 2010
Abnormal motor cortex plasticity in premanifest and very early manifest Huntington disease.
Cognition is affected early in Huntington disease (HD), and in HD animal models there is evidence that this reflects abnormal synaptic plasticity. The authors investigated whether there is any evidence for abnormal synaptic plasticity using the human motor cortex-rTMS model and, if so, if there is any difference between premanifest HD gene carriers and very early manifest HD patients or any relationship with ratings of the severity of motor signs. ⋯ Motor cortex plasticity is abnormal in HD gene carriers but is not closely linked to the development of motor signs of HD.