Handbook of clinical neurology
-
Interest in malingering has grown in recent years, and is reflected in the exponential increase in academic publications since 1990. Although malingering is more commonly detected in medicolegal practice, it is not an all-or-nothing presentation and moreover can vary in the extent of presentation. As a nonmedical disorder, the challenge for clinical practice remains that malingering by definition is intentional and deliberate. ⋯ Factitious disorders are rare in clinical practice and their detection depends largely on the level of clinical suspicion supported by the systematic collection of relevant information from a variety of sources. In this chapter we challenge the accepted DSM-5 definition of factitious disorder and suggest that the traditional glossaries have neglected the extent to which a person's reported symptoms can be considered a product of intentional choice or selective psychopathology largely beyond the subject's voluntary control, or more likely, both. We present evidence to suggest that neurologists preferentially diagnose factitious presentations in healthcare workers as "hysterical," possibly to avoid the stigma of simulated illness.
-
The end-of-life (EOL) phase of patients with a glioma starts when symptom prevalence increases and antitumor treatment is no longer effective. During the EOL phase, care is primarily aimed at reducing symptom burden while maintaining quality of life as long as possible without inappropriate prolongation of life. Palliative care during the EOL phase also involves complex medical decisions for the prevention and relief of suffering. ⋯ Treating disease-specific symptoms, such as impaired consciousness, seizures, focal neurologic deficits and cognitive disturbances, is a major concern during the EOL phase, as these symptoms may interfere with EOL decision making. Advance care planning is aimed at reaching consensus about possible EOL decisions between all participants, respecting the values of patients and their informal caregivers. In order to prevent the possibility that the patient becomes incompetent to make informed decisions, we recommend initiating EOL conversations at a relatively early stage in the disease course.
-
Primary or nontraumatic spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) accounts for 10-15% of all strokes, and has a poor prognosis. ICH has a mortality rate of almost 50% when associated with intraventricular hemorrhage within the first month, and 80% rate of dependency at 6 months from onset. Neuroimaging is critical in identifying the underlying etiology and thus assisting in the important therapeutic decisions. ⋯ A review of the current imaging approach, as well as a differential diagnosis of etiologies and imaging manifestations of primary versus secondary intraparenchymal hemorrhage, is presented. Active bleeding occurs in the first hours after symptom onset, with early neurologic deterioration. Identifying those patients who are more likely to have hematoma expansion is an active area of research, and there are many ongoing therapeutic trials targeting this specific patient population at risk.
-
Review
The classification of conversion disorder (functional neurologic symptom disorder) in ICD and DSM.
The name given to functional neurologic symptoms has evolved over time in the different editions of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), reflecting a gradual move away from an etiologic conception rooted in hysterical conversion to an empiric phenomenologic one, emphasizing the central role of the neurologic examination and testing in demonstrating that the symptoms are incompatible with recognized neurologic disease pathophysiology, or are internally inconsistent.
-
Gliomas form a heterogeneous group of tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) and are traditionally classified based on histologic type and malignancy grade. Most gliomas, the diffuse gliomas, show extensive infiltration in the CNS parenchyma. Diffuse gliomas can be further typed as astrocytic, oligodendroglial, or rare mixed oligodendroglial-astrocytic of World Health Organization (WHO) grade II (low grade), III (anaplastic), or IV (glioblastoma). ⋯ However, it is now fully clear that information on the molecular underpinnings often allows for a more robust classification of (glial) neoplasms. Indeed, in the WHO 2016 classification, histologic and molecular findings are integrated in the definition of several gliomas. As such, this chapter and Chapter 6 are highly interrelated and neither should be considered in isolation.