Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology
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Chronic diseases are increasing worldwide. Association of two or more chronic conditions is related with poor health status and reduced life expectancy, particularly among elderly patients. Comorbidities represent a risk factor for adverse events in several critical illnesses. ⋯ The complete model considered in-hospital death as the main outcome, days of hospitalization as the time variable and CCI as the main predictor, adjusting for NIHSS, sex and nosocomial infections. Patients in CCI group 3 and 4 had an increased risk of in-hospital mortality, independently of NIHSS, sex and nosocomial infections. Elderly patients with multiple comorbidities have higher risk of in-hospital death when affected by ischemic stroke.
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Although tumefactive multiple sclerosis is a well recognized variant of multiple sclerosis, prognostic uncertainty still exists about long term prognosis. The aim of this study was to estimate the occurrence and long term outcome of tumefactive demyelinating lesions (TDLs) in a cohort of multiple sclerosis patients. We reviewed brain MRI of 443 patients referred to our MS clinic. ⋯ Disability progression analysis showed a not significant trend towards lower probability of remaining progression free for TDL patients (50 vs 61 %; P = 0.295). Occurrence of tumefactive demyelinating lesions in our cohort was higher than those reported in other studies. Overall, TDLs were not predictive of poor outcome in terms of disability progression.
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Cardiac arrest (CA) patients can experience neurological sequelae or even death after successful cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) due to cerebral hypoxia- and ischemia-reperfusion-mediated brain injury. Thus, it is important to perform early prognostic evaluations in CA patients. ⋯ Based on EEG, burst suppression, a burst suppression ratio >0.239, periodic discharges, status epilepticus, stimulus-induced rhythmic, periodic or ictal discharges, non-reactive EEG, and the BIS value based on quantitative EEG may be associated with the prognosis of CA after successful CPR. As measures of neural network integrity, the values of small-world characteristics of the neural network derived from EEG patterns have potential applications.
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Mortality caused by coronary heart disease and ischemic stroke (IS) in Poland is still among the highest in Europe. Because acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and IS share major common risk factors, it would be expected that trends in long-term mortality (LTM) and incidence of these two diseases would be similar. Nevertheless, better AMI acute phase therapy and older age of IS patients make post-IS and post-AMI prognosis difficult to compare. ⋯ Kaplan-Meyer estimates showed faster reduction of survival probability in the post-IS males. In Cox regression model presence of IS increased long-term mortality in males. Long-term prognosis was worse for post-IS males in comparison with post-AMI population from Gdynia.
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Meta Analysis
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the treatment of traumatic brain injury: a meta-analysis.
Compelling evidence suggests the advantage of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) in traumatic brain injury. The present meta-analysis evaluated the outcomes of HBOT in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Prospective studies comparing hyperbaric oxygen therapy vs. control in patients with mild (GCS 13-15) to severe (GCS 3-8) TBI were hand-searched from medical databases using the terms "hyperbaric oxygen therapy, traumatic brain injury, and post-concussion syndrome". ⋯ The results of eight studies (average age of patients, 23-41 years) reveal a higher post-treatment GCS score in the HBOT group (pooled difference in means = 3.13, 95 % CI 2.34-3.92, P < 0.001), in addition to greater improvement in GOS and lower mortality, as compared to the control group. However, no significant change in the PTSD score was observed. Patients undergoing hyperbaric therapy achieved significant improvement in the GCS and GOS with a lower overall mortality, suggesting its utility as a standard intensive care regimen in traumatic brain injury.