Hereditary neuropathy with liability to pressure palsies (HNPP; also called tomaculous neuropathy) is an autosomal-dominant
disorder that produces a painless episodic, recurrent, focal demyelinating neuropathy. HNPP generally develops during adolescence,
and may cause attacks of numbness, muscular weakness, and atrophy. Peroneal palsies, carpal tunnel syndrome, and other entrapment
neuropathies may be frequent manifestations of HNPP. Motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities may be reduced in clinically
affected patients, as well as in asymptomatic gene carriers. The histopathological changes observed in peripheral nerves of
HNPP patients include segmental demyelination and tomaculous or “sausage-like” formations. Mild overlap of clinical features
with Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease type 1 (CMT1) may lead patients with HNPP to be misdiagnosed as having CMT1. HNPP and
CMT1 are both demyelinating neuropathies, however, their clinical, pathological, and electrophysiological features are quite
distinct. HNPP is most frequently associated with a 1.4-Mb pair deletion on chromosome 17p12. A duplication of the identical
region leads to CMT1A. Both HNPP and CMT1A result from a dosage effect of the PMP22 gene, which is contained within the deleted/duplicated region. This is reflected in reduced mRNA and protein levels in sural
nerve biopsy samples from HNPP patients. Treatment for HNPP consists of preventative and symptom-easing measures. Hereditary
neuralgic amyotrophy (HNA; also called familial brachial plexus neuropathy) is an autosomal-dominant disorder causing episodes
of paralysis and muscle weakness initiated by severe pain. Individuals with HNA may suffer repeated episodes of intense pain,
paralysis, and sensory disturbances in an affected limb. The onset of HNA is at birth or later in childhood with prognosis
for recovery usually favorable; however, persons with HNA may have permanent residual neurological dysfunction following attack(s).
Episodes are often triggered by infections, immunizations, the puerperium, and stress. Electrophysiological studies show normal
or mildly prolonged motor nerve conduction velocities distal to the affected brachial plexus. Pathological studies have found
axonal degeneration in nerves examined distal to the plexus abnormality. In some HNA pedigrees there are characteristic facial
features, including hypotelorism. The prognosis for recovery of normal function of affected limbs in HNA is good, although
recurrent episodes may cause residual deficits. HNA is genetically linked to chromosome 17q25, where mutations in the septin-9 (SEPT9) gene have been found. 相似文献
Nonorganic failure-to-thrive is a medical-psychological disorder reflecting lack of growth in an infant without apparent physical causes. Children who fail to thrive as infants are at high risk for developmental delays, personality problems, abuse, and death. This article focuses on environmental failure-to-thrive, describing the behavioral characteristics of the nonthriving infant and the family milieu. Aspects of early environments of NOFT infants are profiled, specific intervention strategies are discussed, and recommendations regarding the promotion of intense, consistent multi-disciplinary intervention strategies are advanced. 相似文献
Laparoscopic Heller myotomy (LHM) has become the standard treatment option for achalasia. The incidence of esophageal perforation
reported is about 5%–10%. Robotically assisted Heller myotomy (RAHM) is emerging as a safe alternative to LHM. Data comparing
the two approaches are scant. The aim of this study was to compare RAHM with LHM in terms of efficacy and safety for treatment
of achalasia. A total of 121 patients underwent surgical treatment of achalasia at three institutions. A retrospective review
of prospectively collected perioperative data was performed. Patients were divided into two groups: group A (RAHM), 59 patients,
and group B (LHM), 62 patients. All the operations were completed using minimally invasive techniques. There were 63 women
and 58 men, with a mean age of 45 ±19 years (14–82 years). Fifty-one percent of patients in group A and 95% of patients in
group B reported weight loss. Duration of symptoms was equal for both groups. Dysphagia was the main complaint in both groups
(P = NS). There was no difference in preoperative endoscopic treatment in both groups (44% versus 27%, P = NS). Operative
time was significantly shorter for LHM in the first half of the experience (141 ± 49 versus 122 ± 44 minutes, P < .05). However,
in the last 30 cases there was no difference in operative time between the groups (P = NS). Intraoperative complications (esophageal
perforation) were more frequent in group B (16% versus 0%). The incidence of postoperative heartburn did not differ by group.
There were no deaths. At 18 and 22 months, 92% and 90% of patients had relief of their dysphagia. This study suggests that
RAHM is safer than LHM, because it decreases the incidence of esophageal perforation to 0%, even in patients who had previous
treatment. At short-term follow-up, relief of dysphagia was equally achieved in both groups.
Presented at the Forty-Sixth Annual Meeting of The Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, Chicago, Illinois, May 14–18,
2005 (oral presentation).
This study was supported in part by a grant provided by Intuitive Surgical, Inc. and Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. 相似文献
OBJECTIVE: Interictal spikes in intracranial EEG (iEEG) may correlate with epileptogenic cortex, but review of interictal iEEG is labor intensive. Accurate automated spike detectors are necessary for understanding the role of spikes in epileptogenesis. METHODS: The sensitivity, accuracy and reproducibility of three automated iEEG spike detectors were compared against two human EEG readers using iEEG segments from eight patients. A consensus set of detections was generated for detector calibration. Spike verification was calculated after both human EEG readers independently reviewed all detections. RESULTS: Humans and two of the three automated detectors demonstrated comparable accuracy. In four patients, automated spike detection sensitivity was >70% and accuracy was >50%. In the remaining four patients, EEG background morphology resulted in poorer performance. Blinded human verification accuracy was 76.7+/-6.6% for computer-detected spikes, and 84.5+/-4.1% for human-detected spikes. CONCLUSIONS: Automated iEEG spike detectors perform comparably to humans, but sensitivity and accuracy are patient dependent. Humans verified the majority of computer-detected spikes. SIGNIFICANCE: In some patients automated detectors may be used for mapping spike occurrences in epileptic networks. This may reveal associations between spike distribution, seizure onset, and pathology. 相似文献
As in other clinics, pituitary surgery was definitive treatment in less than 50% of cases of acromegaly treated at one institution over several decades. From 1965 to 1989, 24 acromegalic patients who had noncurative pituitary surgery received radiation therapy at the National Institutes of Health, with a basal human growth hormone level of greater than 5 ng/ml as the criterion for active disease. Using megavoltage irradiation, more than 60% of these patients stabilized at a normal hormonal range, and the overwhelming majority had decreasing growth hormone levels with time. No major side effects of irradiation were encountered except panhypopituitarism of varying degrees. The authors evolved a policy of surgery as the first option, followed by irradiation for patients with postoperative growth hormone levels more than 5 ng/ml. 相似文献
Chronic enhancement of neuromuscular activity by forced exercise training programmes results in selective adaptation of the G4 acetylcholinesterase (AChE) molecular form in hindlimb fast muscles of the rat, with only minor and non-selective AChE changes in the soleus. In order to shed further light on the physiological significance of this G4 adaptation to training, we turned to a voluntary exercise model. The impact of 5 days and 4 weeks of voluntary wheel cage running on AChE molecular forms was examined in four hindlimb fast muscles and the slow-twitch soleus from two rat strains. Inbred Fisher and Sprague– Dawley rats, placed in live-in wheel cages, exercised spontaneously for distances which progressively increased up to an average of ∼3 and 18 km/day, respectively, by the end of week 4. Fast muscles responded to this voluntary activity by massive G4 increases (up to 420%) with almost no changes in A12, so that by week 4 the tetramer became the main AChE component of these muscles. The additional G4 was composed primarily of amphiphilic molecules, suggesting a membrane-bound state. The G4 content of fast muscles was highly correlated with the distance covered by the rats during the 5 days before they were killed ( r = 0.850-0.879, P < 0.001 in three muscles). The soleus muscle, in turn, responded to wheel cage activity by a marked selective reduction of its asymmetric forms—up to 45% for A12. This A12 decline, already maximal by day 5 of wheel cage running, showed no relationship with the distance covered. The present results constitute strong new evidence suggesting that the role of AChE in neuromuscular transmission is not limited solely to the rapid inactivation of just-released acetylcholine. 相似文献
Background: A multidisciplinary effort was undertaken to determine whether patients could safely bypass the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) after same-day surgery by moving to an earlier time point evaluation of recovery criteria.
Methods: A prospective, outcomes research study with a baseline month, an intervention month, and a follow-up month was designed. Five surgical centers (three community-based hospitals and two freestanding ambulatory surgical centers) were utilized. Two thousand five hundred eight patients were involved in the baseline period, and 2,354 were involved in the follow-up period. Outcome measures included PACU bypass rates and adverse events. Intervention consisted of a multidisciplinary educational program and routine feedback reports.
Results: The overall PACU bypass rate (58%) was significantly different from baseline (15.9%, P < 0.001), for patients to whom a general anesthetic was administered (0.4-31.8%, P < 0.001), and for those given other anesthetic techniques (monitored anesthesia care, regional or local anesthetics; 29.1-84.2%, P < 0.001). During the follow-up period, the average (SD) recovery duration for patients who bypassed the PACU was significantly shorter compared to that for patients who did not bypass, 84.6 (61.5) versus 175.1 (98.8) min, P < 0.001, with no change in patient outcome. Patients receiving only short-acting anesthetics were 78% more likely (P < 0.002) to bypass the PACU after adjusting for various surgical procedures. 相似文献