Motor dysfunction in mild cognitive impairment as tested by kinematic analysis and transcranial magnetic stimulation

ObjectivePrevious studies have demonstrated voluntary movement alterations as well as motor cortex excitability and plasticity changes in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). To investigate the pathophysiology of movement abnormalities in MCI, we tested possible relationships between movement abnormalities and primary motor cortex alterations in patients.MethodsFourteen amnestic MCI (aMCI) patients and 16 healthy controls were studied. Cognitive assessment was performed using clinical scales. Finger tapping was recorded by a motion analysis system. Transcranial magnetic stimulation was used to test the input/output curve of motor evoked potentials, intracortical inhibition, and short-latency afferent inhibition. Primary motor cortex plasticity was probed by theta burst stimulation. We investigated correlations between movement abnormalities, clinical scores, and cortical neurophysiological parameters.ResultsMCI patients showed less rhythmic movement but no other movement abnormalities. Cortical excitability measures were normal in patients, whereas plasticity was reduced. Movement rhythm abnormalities correlated with frontal dysfunction scores.ConclusionOur study in MCI patients demonstrated abnormal voluntary movement and plasticity changes, with no correlation between the two. Altered rhythm correlated with frontal dysfunction.SignificanceOur results contribute to the understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms of motor impairment in MCI.     

Tuberculous osteomyelitis of tibial diaphysis following saphenous vein graft harvest for coronary artery bypass: a case report

Tuberculosis in the tibial diaphysis following saphenous vein graft harvest for coronary artery bypass grafting has not been reported, to the best of authors’ knowledge. We report the first such clinical case in view of its clinical rarity and as a complication of the simple procedure like saphenous vein graft harvest.     

Bi-allelic pathogenic variations in DNAJB11 cause Ivemark II syndrome,a renal-hepatic-pancreatic dysplasia

1. Download : Download high-res image (267KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image

     

Primary vaccination in adult patients after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation – A single center retrospective efficacy analysis

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT) results in a loss of humoral immunity and subsequent risk for severe infections. Thus, re-vaccination is required but may fail due to incomplete immune reconstitution. We retrospectively analyzed predictors of immune response to primary vaccination applied according to the EBMT (European Blood and Marrow Transplantation Group) recommendations. Serologic response to vaccination against diphtheria (D), tetanus (T), Bordetella pertussis (aP) and Haemophilus influenzae (Hib) (administrated as combined DTaP-Hib-IPV vaccination) was studied in 84 alloHSCT patients transplanted between 2008 and 2015 (age at alloHSCT: 18.6–70.6 years). All patients with a relapse-free survival of ≥9 months, at least 3 consecutive vaccinations and absence of intravenous immunoglobulin administration within 3 months before and after vaccination met the primary inclusion criteria. Additionally, immunological response to a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine was analyzed in a subgroup of 67 patients. Patients’ characteristics at the time of first vaccination were recorded. Responses were measured as vaccine-specific antibody titers. Regarding DTaP-Hib-IPV vaccination, 89.3% (n = 75) of all patients achieved protective titers to at least 3 of the 4 vaccine components and were thus considered responders. 10.7% (n = 9) of the patients were classified as non-responders with positive immune response to less than 3 components. Highest response was observed for Hib (97.4%), tetanus (95.2%) and pneumococcal vaccination (83.6%) while only 68.3% responded to vaccination against Bordetella pertussis. Significant risk factors for failure of vaccination response included low B cell counts (p < 0.001; cut-off: 0.05 B cells/nl) and low IgG levels (p = 0.026; mean IgG of responders 816 mg/dl vs. 475 mg/dl of non-responders). Further, a trend was observed that prior cGvHD impairs vaccination response as 88.9% of the non-responders but only 54.7% of the responders had prior cGvHD (p = 0.073). The results demonstrate, that the currently proposed vaccination strategy leads to seroprotection in the majority of alloHSCT patients.     

子宫内膜功能亢进性疾病的“异病同治”诊治研究思路＊

笔者根据现代临床子宫内膜的病理演变过程结合中医“异病同治”理念，提出“子宫内膜功能亢进性疾病”概念，涵盖5种常见的子宫内膜疾病：无排卵性异常子宫出血（Abnormal Uterine Bleeding Ovulatory dysfunction，AUB-O），子宫内膜息肉（Endometrial Polyp，EP），子宫内膜异位症（Endometriosis，EMs），子宫腺肌病（Adenomyosis，AM），子宫内膜癌（Endometrial Carcinoma，EC）。基于文献的汇总，分析得到此类疾病的子宫内膜病理演变与中医病因病机的关联性，为寻找关键通路、创新性治疗此类疾病提供了重要的参考方向，对深化中医妇科学常见疾病的共性病因病机提供了理论依据和探索思路。     

A guide to assessing post-operative complications following en bloc spinal resection

En-bloc resection of spinal tumours is a complex procedure with significant morbidity and mortality. The extensive resection leaves a large soft tissue and osseous defect requiring reconstruction. Following en-bloc resection, there may be complications relating to both the removal of the tumour and the subsequent reconstruction. This paper outlines the imaging appearances of the frequently encountered complications in our experience. The primary aim is to improve the confidence of the radiologist when reporting imaging following spinal en-bloc resection, however we believe this is also useful for the spinal and orthopaedic surgeons in assessing the patients following en block resection.