Benign paroxysmal migraine variants of infancy and childhood: Transitions and clinical features

Introduction

Migraine variant disorders of childhood include benign paroxysmal torticollis of infancy (BPTI) and benign paroxysmal vertigo of childhood (BPVC). This study aimed to review our experience with BPTI and BPVC and determine the incidence of children transitioning between each of these disorders and to vestibular migraine (VM).

Benign paroxysmal torticollis of infancy: An underdiagnosed condition

Benign paroxysmal torticollis is probably an under‐diagnosed condition of infancy. It is a self‐limiting disorder characterised by periods of unusual, sustained posture of the head and neck, during which the head tilts to one side. Episodes are often accompanied by marked autonomic features, irritability, ataxia, apathy and drowsiness. They last several hours to a few days and are often recurring every few weeks. They subside within the pre‐school years; however, during later childhood, there is a tendency to develop migraine. Three cases of benign paroxysmal torticollis are presented and are compared with cases in the literature. A telephone survey has been conducted to determine what is the general awareness of paediatricians of this condition in Cyprus. Eighty‐two paediatricians were randomly selected out of 235 paediatricians. All of them agreed to participate. Our cases revealed that benign paroxysmal torticollis may coexist with other problems during infancy. The telephone survey showed that only two out of eighty‐two (2.4%) of the paediatricians are aware of the condition, and none of them was confident regarding the management. Our telephone survey clearly shows that Cypriot paediatricians are not familiar with benign paroxysmal torticollis in infancy which is a benign, self‐limiting disorder. It is essential to recognise the condition and to reassure parents of its benign course and not to be misdiagnosed for other disorders, such as epileptic seizures. We have shown again that benign paroxysmal torticollis in infancy may coexist with motor delay and hearing problems.     

A型肉毒毒素治疗痉挛性斜颈临床疗效观察

目的　探讨A型肉毒毒素 (BTXA)局部注射治疗痉挛性斜颈的疗效及安全性。方法　对 31例痉挛性斜颈患者采用肌电图定位引导进行局部注射BTXA治疗 ,注射剂量根据受累肌肉范围及痉挛程度。按Tsui量表评价疗效。结果　Tsui评分治疗前为 1 3 .62± 2 .1 5 ,治疗后为 4 .1 2± 1 .66。基本缓解 39% ,明显缓解 48% ,部分缓解 1 0 %。有效率为 87% ,作用持续时间平均为 (1 7.62± 4 .93)周。绝大多数病例重复注射同样有效。无全身副作用 ,局部副作用轻微。结论　BTXA治疗痉挛性斜颈是一种安全有效、简便易行的治疗手段 ,可作为痉挛性斜颈治疗的首选方法     

推拿治疗先天性小儿肌性斜颈

目的：探索一种新的预防及治疗先天性小儿肌性斜颈的推拿手法。方法选取先天性肌性斜颈的患儿120例,随机分为对照组和观察组,各60例。对照组采用传统推拿方式,观察组采取融合按揉、弹拨、牵拉等方式的针对性推拿法及预防患儿颜面畸形的面部穴位按揉法。结果2种不同方法干预后,观察组患儿在临床疗效、病情好转率和复发率等方面明显优于对照组,差异具有统计学意义（P ＜0.05）。结论采用针对性推拿法治疗小儿先天性肌性斜颈,其痊愈率和预后等方面均优于传统推拿法。     

以中医推拿为主要手段治疗小儿肌性斜颈的概况及临床体会

小儿肌性斜颈是一种儿科常见病和多发病,其临床表现以患儿头向患侧歪斜、前倾,颜面旋向健侧为特点。近年来,在临床上发现此病的发病率呈上升趋势,早发现早治疗对于患儿的预后及正常发育具有非常关键的意义。目前小儿肌性斜颈的治疗方案具有多样化特点,西医治疗主要手段为手术治疗,而通过中医药手段治疗小儿肌性斜颈具有方法操作简单、起效快、损伤小、不良反应少等优势。文章主要针对近年来临床上应用推拿手法以及配合牵引、中药外敷、穴位埋线、蜡疗、物理治疗、小针刀、针刺等中医药手段治疗小儿肌性斜颈的现状及效果进行综述,为小儿肌性斜颈临床治疗及推拿手法的临床应用提供借鉴与参考。     

Topography of dyskinesias and torticollis evoked by inhibition of substantia nigra pars reticulata

GABAergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNpr) and globus pallidus pars interna (GPi) constitute the output pathways of the basal ganglia. In monkeys, choreiform limb dyskinesias have been described after inhibition of the GPi, but not the SNpr. Given the anatomical and functional similarities between these structures, we hypothesized that choreiform dyskinesias could be evoked by inhibition of an appropriate region within the SNpr. The GABAA receptor agonist, muscimol, was infused into various sites within the SNpr and the adjacent STN of freely moving macaques. The effect of the GABAA antagonist, bicuculline (BIC), was also examined. Muscimol (MUS) in SNpr evoked the following: (1) choreiform dyskinesias of the contralateral arm and/or leg from central and lateral sites; (2) contralaterally directed torticollis from central and posterior sites; and (3) contraversive quadrupedal rotation from anterior and lateral sites. MUS infusions into the adjacent SN pars compacta or STN were without effect, ruling out a contribution of drug spread to adjacent structures. BIC in SNpr induced ipsiversive postures without choreiform dyskinesia or torticollis, whereas in the STN, it evoked ballistic movements. This is the first report of choreiform dyskinesia evoked by inhibition of the SNpr. This highly site‐specific effect was obtained from a restricted region within the SNpr distinct from that responsible for inducing torticollis. These results suggest that overactivity of different SNpr outputs mediates choreiform dyskinesia and torticollis. These abnormalities are symptoms of dystonia, Huntington's disease, and iatrogenic dyskinesias, suggesting that these conditions may result, in part, from a loss of function in SNpr efferent projections. © 2012 Movement Disorder Society     

Sternocleidomastoid ultrasonography data for muscular torticollis in infants

Introduction: This study was performed to obtain normative ultrasonographic data of the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle in infants and to describe an ultrasound method for evaluating muscular torticollis. Methods: The thickness and cross‐sectional area (CSA) of the sternal and clavicular heads of the SCM in 84 subjects were analyzed retrospectively. The diagnostic performance of ultrasonography (US) was estimated using receiver‐operating characteristic analysis. Results: Muscle thickness increased with age until 10 months. There were no significant differences in thickness or CSA between the right and left sides (P > 0.05) in normal subjects. A ratio of the thickness of the affected side to the unaffected side for the sternal head of the SCM muscle of >1.19 showed a diagnostic sensitivity of 97.9% and specificity of 96.4%. Conclusions: Distinguishing the heads of the SCM muscle and comparing the thickness of the same head on both sides using US may be helpful for evaluating torticollis in infants. Muscle Nerve 000: 000–000, 2013     

The effectiveness of activity scheduling and relaxation training in the treatment of spasmodic dysmenorrhea

The first purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of activity scheduling as a treatment for spasmodic dysmenorrhea, compared to relaxation training (a treatment of demonstrated effectiveness) and to a waitinglist control condition. The second purpose was to examine the differential effectiveness of these treatments on different measures. Forty women suffering from spasmodic dysmenorrhea completed six individualized treatment sessions or remained on the waiting list. Results showed that both activity scheduling and relaxation training were effective treatments for spasmodic dysmenorrhea, with both treatments producing improvements on general measures of dysmenorrhea, a symptom severity measure, and an activity measure.     

Basal ganglia and thalamo-cortical hypermetabolism in patients with spasmodic torticollis

Introduction – The basal ganglia are thought to be involved in the primary dystonias, largely because of the repeated demonstration of neuropathological changes in these nuclei in the secondary dystonias. A hyperactivity of a network involving basal ganglia has been suggested in experimental animal dystonia. To test this hypothesis in humans, we studied the functional correlates of primary cervical dystonia using [¹⁸F]FDG and PET. Material and methods — Regional cerebral glucose metabolism (rCMRglc) was measured in 10 patients with idiopathic torticollis (6 drug-free and 4 drug-naive) and in 15 normal controls, using 2-[¹⁸F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose ([¹⁸F]FDG) and positron emission tomography (PET). Results — A significant hypermetabolism in the basal ganglia, thalamus, premotor-motor cortex and cerebellum in the patients compared with normal controls was found. The patients were correctly assigned to their clinical category by a discriminant function analysis with a total accuracy of 96%. Conclusion — The results support the hypothesis that a dysfunction of a subcortical-cortical motor network may play a role in the pathogenesis of focal dystonia, in agreement with the experimental dystonia models.