1,721,032 research outputs found
The importance of assessing interactions between different circuits in primary motor cortex in Parkinson's disease
No full textLong-term Results for the BacJac Interspinous Device in Lumbar Spine Degenerative Disease
No full textObjective: To evaluate the long-term results of using the BacJac interspinous device (Pioneer Surgical Technology Inc.) in a series of patients with degenerative lumbar spine disease. Methods: Forty-one patients undergoing lumbar surgery with implantation of a BacJac device from 2009 to 2012 were enrolled in the present study. Patients were evaluated using the Oswestry Disability Scale (ODI). Results: Although all patients showed a significant improvement of the ODI score immediately after surgery, only 41% of patients showed a satisfactory outcome. We observed worse results in the patients operated on at the L3-L4 level and in whom the device was implanted in a segment different from the one where surgical decompression had been performed. Weight gain in the months after surgery was also a poor outcome-influencing factor. Conclusions: This study confirms what is already suggested in the relevant literature regarding the long-term inefficacy of the so-called dynamic stabilization devices
Radiation-induced anaplastic ependymoma mimicking a skull base meningioma: A case report
Full text linkThe present study describes the case of a 63-year-old woman presenting with headache, dizziness and vomiting due to a an ovoid mass in the left pre-bulbar cistern, apparently arising from the lower clivus and the foramen magnum. The clinical history revealed the subtotal removal of a right cerebellar low-grade glioma 15 years previously and subsequent conventional 60-Gy radiotherapy. Notably, following gross total resection, histopathological examination showed microscopic features that resulted in a diagnosis of anaplastic ependymoma. The patient underwent surgery to remove the mass and post-operative chemotherapy with temozolomide. A progressive improvement of neurological signs and symptoms was observed during the postoperative course. At the 6-month follow-up, the patient was free from clinical and radiological recurrence. The unusual features of this rare secondary brain tumor were the extrassial location in the posterior fossa, the unusual age-associated location of the histological subtype and the fact that it closely mimicked a skull-base meningioma
Radiation-induced anaplastic ependymoma mimicking a skull base meningioma: A case report
No full textThe present study describes the case of a 63-year-old woman presenting with headache, dizziness and vomiting due to a an ovoid mass in the left pre-bulbar cistern, apparently arising from the lower clivus and the foramen magnum. The clinical history revealed the subtotal removal of a right cerebellar low-grade glioma 15 years previously and subsequent conventional 60-Gy radiotherapy. Notably, following gross total resection, histopathological examination showed microscopic features that resulted in a diagnosis of anaplastic ependymoma. The patient underwent surgery to remove the mass and post-operative chemotherapy with temozolomide. A progressive improvement of neurological signs and symptoms was observed during the postoperative course. At the 6-month follow-up, the patient was free from clinical and radiological recurrence. The unusual features of this rare secondary brain tumor were the extrassial location in the posterior fossa, the unusual age-associated location of the histological subtype and the fact that it closely mimicked a skull-base meningioma
Battery Energy Storage System Sizing Strategy for Naval Vessels through Multi-Objective Optimisation
No full text
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Voluntary, spontaneous and reflex blinking in patients with clinically probable progressive supranuclear palsy
No full textPatients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) often have blinking abnormalities. In this study we examined the kinematic features of voluntary, spontaneous and reflex blinking in 11 patients with PSP and healthy control subjects. Patients were asked to blink voluntarily as fast as possible; spontaneous blinking was recorded during two 60 s rest periods; reflex blinking was evoked by electrical stimulation of the supraorbital nerve. Eyelid movements were recorded with the SMART analyzer motion system. During voluntary blinking the closing and opening phases lasted longer in patients than in healthy subjects. Furthermore, the peak velocity of the closing phase of voluntary blinking was lower in patients than healthy subjects. During spontaneous blinking the blink rate was markedly lower in patients than in control subjects. Patient's recordings also showed kinematic abnormalities of spontaneous (reduced peak velocity of both closing and opening phases) and reflex (reduced peak velocity and increased duration of the opening phase) blinking. Recordings during reflex blinking disclosed an enhanced excitability of the interneuronal pool mediating the closing and opening blink phases. Finally, the pause, a neurophysiological marker of the switching processes between the closing and opening phases, was prolonged in all the three types of blinking. The abnormal kinematic variables correlated with patients' clinical and kinematic features. Abnormal voluntary, spontaneous and reflex blinking in patients with PSP reflects the widespread cortical, subcortical and brainstem degeneration related to this disease. © The Author (2008). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain. All rights reserved
Advances in the pathophysiology of adult-onset focal dystonias: recent neurophysiological and neuroimaging evidence
Full text linkFocal dystonia is a movement disorder characterized by involuntary muscle contractions that determine abnormal postures. The traditional hypothesis that the pathophysiology of focal dystonia entails a single structural dysfunction (i.e. basal ganglia) has recently come under scrutiny. The proposed network disorder model implies that focal dystonias arise from aberrant communication between various brain areas. Based on findings from animal studies, the role of the cerebellum has attracted increased interest in the last few years. Moreover, it has been increasingly reported that focal dystonias also include nonmotor disturbances, including sensory processing abnormalities, which have begun to attract attention. Current evidence from neurophysiological and neuroimaging investigations suggests that cerebellar involvement in the network and mechanisms underlying sensory abnormalities may have a role in determining the clinical heterogeneity of focal dystonias
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