Neuroendocrinol Lett
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Neuroendocrinol Lett · Jan 2010
Clinical TrialLack of short-wavelength light during the school day delays dim light melatonin onset (DLMO) in middle school students.
Circadian timing affects sleep onset. Delayed sleep onset can reduce sleep duration in adolescents required to awake early for a fixed school schedule. The absence of short-wavelength ("blue") morning light, which helps entrain the circadian system, can hypothetically delay sleep onset and decrease sleep duration in adolescents. The goal of this study was to investigate whether removal of short-wavelength light during the morning hours delayed the onset of melatonin in young adults. ⋯ Lack of short-wavelength light in the morning has been shown to delay the circadian clock in controlled laboratory conditions. The results presented here are the first to show, outside laboratory conditions, that removal of short-wavelength light in the morning hours can delay DLMO in 8th-grade students. These field data, consistent with results from controlled laboratory studies, are directly relevant to lighting practice in schools.
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The periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis and cervical adenitis (PFAPA) syndrome appears to be more common than generally appreciated and should be differentiated from hereditary periodic fever syndromes, particularly from mevalonate kinase deficiency (MKD). ⋯ Raised IgD levels may represent a non-specific epiphenomenon, which frequently accompanies PFAPA syndrome as well as MKD. Because of the overlapping clinical and laboratory features, genetic testing of the MVK gene is indicated to differentiate these two conditions, if clinical criteria for both are fulfilled.
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Neuroendocrinol Lett · Jan 2010
ReviewOxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic pain syndrome with unknown etiology and pathophysiology. Recent studies have shown some evidence demonstrating that oxidative stress may have a role in the pathophysiology of FM. ⋯ To this respect, Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) deficiency, an essential electron carrier in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and a strong antioxidant, alters mitochondria function and mitochondrial respiratory complexes organization and leading to increased ROS generation. Recently have been showed CoQ10 deficiency in blood mononuclear cells in FM patients, so if the hypothesis that mitochondrial dysfunction is the origin of oxidative stress in FM patients is demonstrated, could help to understand the complex pathophysiology of this disorder and may lead to development of new therapeutic strategies for prevention and treatment of this disease.
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Neuroendocrinol Lett · Jan 2010
Case ReportsPosterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome (PRES) in 5-year-old girl with nephrotic syndrome.
Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome (PRES) is a rare complication of nephrotic syndrome in children. This clinical condition is caused by localized brain angioedema mostly in parieto-occipital region and results in dramatic and acute features as sudden loss of consciousness, epileptic paroxysms, strong headache or visual disturbances. Uncontrolled hypertension often participates in PRES development. ⋯ The aim of our case report is to us remind of possible development of PRES at the time of edema regression in nephrotic syndrome.
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Neuroendocrinol Lett · Mar 2009
Randomized Controlled TrialThe epidural steroids in the prevention of epidural fibrosis: MRI and clinical findings.
Epidural fibrosis (EF) represents a frequent and poorly manageable complication of lumbar disk surgery. ⋯ The application of ES did not prove to be useful in the prevention of Failed Back Surgery Syndrome and epidural scar formation. Postoperative pain was decreased in the steroid treated group during the first postoperative week, but not 12 months postoperatively.