Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Feb 2008
Randomized Controlled TrialA longitudinal study of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and intact parathyroid hormone levels indicate the importance of vitamin D and calcium homeostasis regulation in multiple sclerosis.
Past sun exposure and vitamin D3 supplementation have been associated with a reduced risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). There are no previous longitudinal studies of vitamin D in MS. ⋯ The endocrine circuitry regulating serum calcium may be altered in MS. There is an inverse relationship between serum vitamin D level and MS clinical activity. The role of vitamin D in MS must be explored further.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Feb 2008
Prolonged activation EEG differentiates dementia with and without delirium in frail elderly patients.
Delirium in the elderly results in increased morbidity, mortality and functional decline. Delirium is underdiagnosed, particularly in dementia. To increase diagnostic accuracy, we investigated whether maintenance of activation assessed by EEG discriminates delirium in association with dementia (D+D) from dementia without delirium (DP) and cognitively unimpaired elderly subjects (CU). ⋯ Dementia associated with delirium can be discriminated reliably from dementia alone in a meaningful clinical setting. Thus EEG evaluation in chronic encephalopathy should be optimised by a simple activation task and spectral analysis, particularly in the elderly with dementia.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Feb 2008
Longitudinal analysis of regional grey matter loss in Huntington disease: effects of the length of the expanded CAG repeat.
The mechanisms guiding the progression of neuronal damage in patients with Huntington disease (HD) are not completely understood. It is unclear whether the genotype--that is, the length of the expanded CAG repeat--guides the location and speed of grey matter decline once HD is clinically manifested. Moreover, the relationship between cortical and subcortical grey matter atrophy and the severity of motor symptoms of HD is controversial. ⋯ These results confirm that brain atrophy progresses after the clinical onset of HD and that regional atrophy is related to symptom severity. Moreover, our results also indicate that intensity and rate of progression of brain atrophy are more pronounced in patients with larger, expanded CAG repeat sequences.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Feb 2008
Letter Comparative StudyAssessment of visual pursuit in post-comatose states: use a mirror.
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Jan 2008
Epidemiology and clinical features of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Ireland between 1995 and 2004.
We conducted a prospective, population based study to examine trends in incidence and prevalence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in Ireland from 1995 to 2004. ⋯ 465 Irish residents were diagnosed with ALS during the study periods. The annual incidence rate of ALS in Ireland remained stable over this time (2.0 cases per 100,000 person-years; 95% CI 1.9, 2.2). Median survival of Irish ALS patients was 16.4 months and did not change during the study period. Demographics and clinical features of the incident and prevalent Irish ALS cohorts were markedly different.