Volumetric analysis of a specific language region - the planum temporale.

Planum temporale volumes were determined for 42 control children (ages 4.2-15.7 years) using magnetic resonance imaging. The mean left planum temporale volume was 2729 mm3 (SD = 567) and the mean right planum temporale volume was 2758 mm3 (SD = 546). No significant hemispheric asymmetry was demonstrated. Analysis of co-variance (ANCOVA) showed that the absolute and proportional planum temporale volumes were not significantly associated with age or gender. We also demonstrated a reproducible method for planum temporale volume measurement by acquiring images in the coronal plane and then visualising the sagittal plane to improve accuracy for the posterior border.     

Point of Care Portable Spirometry in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Inpatients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Lung - Spirometry is required to accurately diagnose chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Following an acute exacerbation, it is recommended that spirometry be performed after a delay of...     

Predictors of hippocampal, cerebral, and cerebellar volume reduction in childhood epilepsy

PURPOSE: We examined the factors related to brain volume reduction in a pediatric sample of patients that included those with nonintractable epilepsy. METHODS: Entry criteria were children less than 18 years old with epilepsy referred for MRI, including a whole brain volumetric sequence. The sample size was 231. Risk factors were ascertained from interviews and reviews of medical records. Factors included age of onset, seizure years, family history, status epilepticus, intellectual disability, and febrile convulsions. MRI data were obtained for 44 normal childhood control subjects. RESULTS: Cerebral and cerebellar volumes were significantly associated with age, gender, moderate-to-severe intellectual disability (p < 0.001), seizure years, and status epilepticus (p < 0.03). Compared with controls, the brain volume of all patients was reduced by 10% (p < 0.001). Hippocampal volume was significantly associated with total brain volume, age (p < 0.001), focal cerebral ischemic injury, and complex febrile convulsions (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Significant brain volume reduction is present in children with epilepsy. A component of this reduction is due to acquired insults. The reduction is seen even in children with infrequent seizures over a brief time, suggesting an innate structural abnormality. When evaluating possible etiologic factors in the development of hippocampal volume reduction, one must control for total brain volume. We have confirmed the association of complex febrile convulsions with unilateral hippocampal volume reduction.     

"Convulsive" nonepileptic seizures have a characteristic pattern of rhythmic artifact distinguishing them from convulsive epileptic seizures

PURPOSE: Approximately 30% of patients admitted for video-EEG monitoring have psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). Differentiation of "convulsive" PNES from convulsive seizures can be difficult. The EEG often displays rhythmic movement artifact that may resemble seizure activity and confound the interpretation. We sought to determine whether time-frequency mapping of the rhythmic EEG artifact during "convulsive" PNES reveals a pattern that differs from that of epileptic seizures. METHODS: EEGs from 15 consecutive patients with "convulsive" PNESs were studied with time-frequency mapping by using NEUROSCAN and compared with 15 patients with convulsive epileptic seizures. Fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) were performed to determine the dominant frequency for 1- to 2-s windows every 2 s through the seizures. RESULTS: The dominant frequency remained stable within a narrow range for the duration of the PNES, whereas in the epileptic seizures, it evolved through a wide range. The coefficient of variation of the frequency during the seizures was considerably less for patients without epilepsy (median, 15.0%; range, 7.2-23.7% vs. median, 58.0%; range, 34.8-92.1%; p < 0.001). The median frequency did not differ significantly between groups (4.2 vs. 4.6 Hz; p = 0.290). CONCLUSIONS: "Convulsive" PNES display a characteristic pattern on time-frequency mapping of the EEG artifact, with a stable, nonevolving frequency that is different from the evolving pattern seen during an epileptic seizure.     

Measurement of posterior tibial translation in the posterior cruciate ligament-reconstructed knee: significance of the shift in the reference position

BACKGROUND: The measurement of anterior or posterior tibial translation depends on the existence of a repeatable and accurate reference position of the knee from which the corresponding translation is measured. HYPOTHESIS: Clinical measurements of posterior tibial translation alone do not accurately reflect the laxity of posterior cruciate ligament-reconstructed knees. STUDY DESIGN: Controlled laboratory study. METHODS: Ten human cadaveric knees were tested by using a robotic/universal force-moment sensor testing system. The reference positions and the resulting kinematics in response to a 134-N anterior-posterior tibial load were determined for the intact and reconstructed knees. Posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction was performed with the graft tensioned and fixed at two different positions: 1) 90 degrees of knee flexion with a 134-N anterior tibial load and 2) full extension with no load. RESULTS: Posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with graft fixation at full extension with no load resulted in anterior shift of the reference position by 1.5 to 3.2 mm. The reconstruction resulted in an overconstrained knee with significantly decreased total anterior-posterior translation of 2.6 to 3.2 mm. However, the posterior tibial translation measured was not significantly different from that of the intact knee. Posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with graft fixation performed at 90 degrees of flexion with a 134-N anterior tibial load resulted in kinematics similar to those of the intact knee. CONCLUSION: Posterior tibial translations that are measured clinically can be misleading because the reference position of the knee can be shifted significantly after posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Clinical Relevance: The measurement of total anterior-posterior translation may be a more accurate way to assess kinematics of the reconstructed knee.