Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) has been shown to ameliorate respiratory impairment, which, as the disease worsens, is often responsible for death in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Its use, however, is uncommon, and its overall value in improving quality of life and survival has been debated. Findings of a randomized controlled study by a team from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, may shift clinicians' attitudes about the intervention.
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, ALS, sural nerves, sural nerve involvement
In the late 1890s, Joseph Francois Felix Babinski (1857-1932), a French neurologist of Polish descent, discovered that if noxious stimulation of the sole of a patient's foot caused the big toe to rise and the other toes to splay, the reflex was indicative of corticospinal tract damage. "
The most common club drugs or party drugs are MDMA, ketamine and GHB. How dangerous is continued use of these substances? Can they cause real damage to the brain?
Huntington disease, neurogenetics, George Sumner Huntington, Systematic Evaluation of Treatments for Huntington's Disease, Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
traumatic brain injury, memory impairment, depression, neurobehavioral disorders
The multitalented psychiatrist talks with Psychiatric Times about his research, his literary work and the future of psychiatry itself.
Affecting 70% of patients with Alzheimer's disease and common in patients suffering from other dementing illnesses, apathy is associated with functional impairment and caregiver distress at all levels of disease severity. Assessment and treatment for this under-recognized syndrome are discussed.
Patients with HIV infection are at risk of developing psychiatric symptoms and disorders similar to those seen in the general population. What unique biological, psychological and environmental factors are involved in treating this population?
Health-related quality of life can provide a simultaneous and net assessment of the therapeutic and adverse affects of psychiatric treatments for depression. While the cognitive side effects of ECT might be thought of as a limiting factor in HRQOL gains, they have not been systematically studied until recently. Find out what quantitative assessment of HRQOL following ECT for major depressive disorder shows.
Through the Times With Max Fink, M.D. by Arline Kaplan Long viewed as a pre-eminent researcher and advocate for electroconvulsive therapy, Max Fink, M.D., reflects on more than five decades of groundbreaking research.
Updates Show Progress in TMS for Depression and Schizophrenia by Arline Kaplan In research presented at the 2005 APA annual meeting, transcranial magnetic stimulation is showing efficacy in treating depression and schizophrenia in the research setting. The question of how to translate those findings to a real-world setting still remains.
This article will provide an overview of treatment modalities, with emphasis on the future direction of interventions targeting aggression in children with autism.
Individuals with schizophrenia are at greater risk for weight gain than the general population. From recent research, it appears that some of the second-generation antipsychotics may be more likely to cause weight gain than others. Recommendations for treatment strategies are provided.
traumaticbraininjury,behavioralneurology,generalneurology,neuropsychiatry
"Chemobrain," a term coined by patients in breast cancer support groups to describe cognitive impairment associated with chemotherapy, is becoming a subject of research.
Subspecialization within the practice of neurology is now reality with the recent approvals of subspecialty designations for neuromuscular pathology, headache medicine, and neuro-oncology. The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Committee on Neuromuscular Pathology sponsored the neuromuscular pathology membership application. Two associations--the AAN Headache and Facial Pain Section and the American Headache Society--sponsored the headache medicine application.
Animal models enable researchers to track amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) pathogenesis. Erik Storkebaum, MSc, and colleagues at the Center for Transgene Technology and Gene Therapy at Flanders Interuniversity, Leuven, Belgium, took several approaches to increase supply of the neuroprotective protein vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in an animal model. "When administered to rats at 60 days, which is 1 month before symptoms, it delayed onset and prolonged survival by 22 days. When we gave VEGF at the age of disease onset, which more closely mimics the human situation, the treatment still prolonged life by an average of 10 days," Storkebaum reported at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in October 2004
Until recently, physicians assumed that any recovery from spinal cord injury (SCI) was limited to the first few months to a year after the injury occurred. In children, this window of opportunity for recovery could last about 2 years. Certainly, no one expected any significant recovery in any person with a chronic SCI or other condition that causes SCIs, such as a stroke, blood clots, or arteriovenous malformation affecting the spinal cord.
Clinical trials--and how they are conducted--have been getting a lot of attention lately, as discussed in our article, "Clinical Trials Appear Headed for More Openness," beginning on page 13. We had already finished editing the article, however, when I got a notice on June 22 about a survey commissioned by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. According to the results, of the surveyed US physicians who treat people with Parkinson disease (PD), 96% agreed that clinical trials are necessary to develop better treatments.
Plenty of data show that a greater share of physicians practice in urban than in rural areas. The Council of Graduate Medical Education called it geographic maldistribution, "one of the most enduring features on the American health landscape," and said that it is likely to continue until universal health care is enacted.
Neurodegeneration associated with glaucoma was prevented in DBA/2J mice as a result of treatment with 1000 rads of radiation plus T-cell-depleted bone marrow.
Can a common cough medicine contribute to effective treatment of symptoms in persons with neurologic disorders? The evidence is mounting in its favor. At the recent American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, research results were presented from a phase 3, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter study into the safety and efficacy of a dextromethorphan/quinidine capsule in
Joseph I. Sirven, MD, and Joseph F. Drazkowski, MD, neurologists at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, led a recent study in partnership with the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University (ASU) to determine how well medical risks and treatment advances for neurologic conditions are conveyed in US newspaper articles.
