Current neurology and neuroscience reports
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Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep · Jan 2013
ReviewPain and multiple sclerosis: pathophysiology and treatment.
Pain is a common symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS) and has recently been estimated to be experienced by up to 75 % of patients. Pain can be present at any point in the course of the disease and patients may experience pain from various causes simultaneously. Pain in MS can also be secondary to other symptoms, such as spasticity, fatigue, and mood disorder. ⋯ Pain affects quality of life and can influence a person's participation in family life and work and affect mood. Most of the pain literature in the field of MS is based on open-label studies involving small numbers of subjects. Placebo-controlled trials in severe pain syndromes such as trigeminal neuralgia are unethical but for other types of MS-related pain conditions, placebo-controlled trials are ethical and necessary to establish efficacy, particularly given the well-documented placebo effect for various painful conditions This review discusses available data and emphasizes areas of pain research that require further attention.
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Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep · Jan 2013
ReviewReversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome: a review of recent research.
Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) is a collective term used for transient noninflammatory, nonatherosclerotic segmental constriction of cerebral arteries. The angiopathies of RCVS have previously been defined by several nomenclatures. Current opinion favors the unification of these pathophysiologically related angiopathies because of their similar angiographic features and clinical course. ⋯ In contrast to CNS vasculitis, RCVS is typically a transient condition with relatively good clinical outcomes. Although a complete understanding of the etiological and pathological features of RCVS has not yet been achieved, alterations in vascular tone lead to the observed arterial changes. In this review, we aim to provide a summary of RCVS and provide insight into current perspectives of the underlying pathophysiological processes, diagnosis, and treatment.
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Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep · Jan 2013
ReviewUses of skin biopsy for sensory and autonomic nerve assessment.
Skin biopsy is a valuable diagnostic tool for small-fiber-predominant neuropathy by the quantification of intraepidermal nerve fiber density (IENFD). It has the unique advantage of being a minimally invasive procedure with the potential for longitudinal evaluation of both sensory and autonomic fibers. ⋯ Recent advances include an expansion of the skin punch biopsy technique to evaluate larger myelinated fibers and mechanoreceptors, and recent work has also focused on additional methods of quantifying dermal fibers and densely innervated autonomic structures. This review discusses current work using skin biopsy for the pathologic analysis of peripheral nerve fibers in neuropathy of various causes as well as its use in clinical trials.