Neurogastroenterology and motility : the official journal of the European Gastrointestinal Motility Society
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Neurogastroenterol. Motil. · Mar 2019
Observational StudyPredictive clinical factors for penetration and aspiration in Parkinson's disease.
Do the current swallow-specific subquestions of neurological diagnostic tools reflect the objective swallowing function in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients or are clinical factors superior to predict critical aspiration? ⋯ Self-perception of swallowing is no reliable tool for identifying dysphagia and questionnaires are insufficient for detecting previous aspiration. Consequent and specific asking for previous subjective aspiration signs is the single most important measure for identifying PD patients at risk for critical aspiration.
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Neurogastroenterol. Motil. · Mar 2019
Non-invasive transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation prevents postoperative ileus and endotoxemia in mice.
The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway comprises the perception of peripheral inflammation by afferent sensory neurons and reflex activation of efferent vagus nerve activity to regulate inflammation. Activation of this pathway was shown to reduce the inflammatory response and improve outcome of postoperative ileus (POI) and sepsis in rodents. Herein, we tested if a non-invasive auricular electrical transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) affects inflammation in models of POI or endotoxemia. ⋯ tVNS prevents intestinal and systemic inflammation. Activation of the DMV indicates an afferent to efferent central circuitry of the tVNS stimulation and the beneficial effects of tVNS depend on an intact vagus nerve. tVNS may become a non-invasive approach for treatment of POI.