Successful treatment of hemorrhagic bullous Henoch‐Schonlein purpura with intravenous immunoglobulins

Henoch‐Schonlein purpura (HSP) is the most common systemic vasculitis in childhood. There is no consensus about the management for isolated cutaneous manifestations in HSP. We describe a case of HSP presenting with severe skin lesions that did not respond to standard therapy with corticosteroids. The 11‐year‐old child was treated with intravenous immunoglobulins, which induced rapid and persistent resolution of symptomatology.     

Diet and nutrition against inflammatory bowel disease: Trick or treat(ment)?

Even if the relationships between nutrition and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) remain underexplored, the current literature is providing, day by day, much more evidence on the effects of various diets in both prevention and treatment of such illnesses. Wrong dietary habits, together with other environmental factors such as pollution, breastfeeding, smoke, and/or antibiotics, are among the theoretical pathogenetic causes of IBD, whose multifactorial aetiology has been already confirmed. While some of these risk factors are potentially reversible, some others cannot be avoided, and efficient treatments become necessary to prevent IBD spread or recurrence. Furthermore, the drugs currently available for treatment of such disease provide low-to-no effect against the symptoms, making the illnesses still strongly disabling. Whether nutrition and specific diets will prove to effectively interrupt the course of IBD has still to be clarified and, in this sense, further research concerning the applications of such dietary interventions is still needed.     

Impact of Transcatheter Occlusion of a Patent Ductus Arteriosus on Atrial Septal Defect Diameter in Children

Background. A persistent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) may delay closure of a coexisting atrial septal defect (ASD) due to volume loading and enlargement of the left atrium. The purpose of this study was to investigate the natural history of ASD size in patients with a PDA following transcatheter PDA occlusion. Methods. All patients with an ASD and a PDA who underwent transcatheter PDA occlusion at Texas Children’s Hospital were identified. Patients with ASD diameter <3 mm, or additional cardiac defects were excluded. Eight patients (7 females) with small‐ to moderate‐sized ASDs and a PDA were identified. Patient demographics, echocardiographic data, and cardiac catheterization data were recorded. Data were analyzed by 1‐tailed t‐test. Results. Following PDA occlusion, ASD diameter decreased in 6 of 8 patients by a mean of 3.8 mm (±2.3 mm), including 2 that closed. The median duration of follow‐up was 689 days. One ASD remained unchanged and 1 increased in size. The mean maximum ASD diameter decreased from 6.4 mm (±2.2 mm) to 3.9 mm (±3.4 mm) (P = .03). Two patients underwent subsequent transcatheter ASD occlusion. Conclusion. Following transcatheter PDA occlusion, small‐ to moderate‐sized ASDs have significant probability to decrease in size, and possibly close. In infants and children, we recommend transcatheter PDA occlusion, and serial follow‐up of the size of the ASD. This will allow many small‐ to moderate‐sized ASDs to either close, or become smaller, obviating the need for future intervention.     

Bilateral Implantation of Centromedian‐Parafascicularis Complex and GPi: A New Combination of Unconventional Targets for Deep Brain Stimulation in Severe Parkinson Disease

Objectives. Traditional deep brain stimulation (DBS) at the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has proved to be efficacious on core Parkinsonian symptoms. However, very disabling l ‐dopa–induced abnormal involuntary movements (AIMs) and axial signs are slightly affected, suggesting that we target less conventional targets. Our candidates for DBS were the globus pallidus internus (GPi) plus the intralaminar thalamic complex (Pf or CM), given its extensive functional links with basal ganglia nuclei. Materials and Methods. The routine utilization of our innovative stereotactic apparatus allows us to implant, at the same time, both the CM‐Pf complex together with the GPi in six Parkinson disease patients. Both intraoperative and postoperative neurophysiologic assessments helped us recognize functional subregions while optimizing implantation of electrodes. Unified Parkinson disease rating scale (UPDRS) motor scores, AIMs, and freezing were carefully blindly evaluated for each condition. Results. A significant amelioration of UPDRS scores was achieved by simultaneous activation of both targets. CM‐Pf activation was only slightly effective in reducing rigidity and akinesia, but more efficacious on freezing. Not surprisingly, AIMs were peculiarly decreased by the activation of the permanent electro‐catheter in the posteroventral GPi. Conclusions. These findings confirm that, in selected patients, it is conceivable to target structures other than the conventional STN in order to maximize clinical benefit.     

Idiopathic Headache as a Possible Risk Factor for Phantom Tooth Pain

Following tooth pulp extirpation, some subjects suffer from persistent pain which affects edentate sites in absence of any local pathology. As regards this peculiar pain, called phantom tooth pain (PTP), what is puzzling is the fact there is a low prevalence of PTP in a very large population showing identical conditions of tooth pulp extirpation. The present investigation indicates that PTP mainly affects migraine (M) and cluster headache (CH) sufferers, whereas it does not affect subjects who have a negative personal and family history for idiopathic headache (IH). These results circumscribe the presence of PTP to a specific section of the population. The present results, besides indicating that PTP may be the result of a peculiar neuronal predisposition relating to IH pathogenesis, suggests some practical therapeutic hints. In fact, successful anti- M and anti-CH prophylactic treatment greatly improve PTP syndrome.