1,720,970 research outputs found
Isolated Memory Loss in Anti-NMDAR Encephalitis
No full textBackground and objectives: To report a case of anti-NMDAR encephalitis presenting with isolated memory dysfunction. Methods: A 29-year-old woman was admitted to the Neurology Department referring memory impairment with a subacute onset. The initial assessment included EEG, neuropsychological tests, and brain MRI. Serum and CSF samples were collected for immunologic studies. The diagnostic evaluation was completed with a total body PET scan. Results: Patient's neurologic examination was unremarkable apart from an episodic memory deficit, confirmed by neuropsychological examination. The EEG revealed epileptiform discharges in the temporal lobes, whereas brain MRI showed bilateral temporal lobes hyperintense lesions on fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images and T2-weighted images. NMDAR-IgG was detected in the patient's serum and CSF by cell-based assay confirming the diagnosis of definite anti-NMDAR encephalitis. The total body PET showed only a slight hypometabolism in the right temporal cortex and in the cerebellar hemispheres. After a course of IV immunoglobulin and corticosteroid therapy, a marked improvement of the memory deficit was observed. Discussion: This case shows that anti-NMDAR encephalitis can present with isolated memory loss. Neural antibody testing in these patients could play a pivotal role in early diagnosis and prompt treatment
Real-world application of the updated diagnostic criteria for paraneoplastic neurological syndromes
No full text: Following recent discoveries, diagnostic criteria for paraneoplastic neurological syndromes (PNS) have been recently updated. However, how the criteria impact PNS diagnosis is still unclear. We retrospectively applied the previously existing 2004 criteria (2004-c) and the updated 2021 diagnostic criteria (2021-c) to 74 patients with suspect PNS. The 2021 criteria were highly sensitive (88%) and specific (80%). There was good concordance between the definite PNS group (2004-c) and the definite plus probable PNS group (2021-c). The inter-rater reliability for the 2021-c was excellent. The application of the 2021 criteria improves the diagnosis of patients with PNS
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
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Light Sensitivity in Myasthenia Gravis: Clinical Characteristics and Impact on Quality of Life
No full textIntroduction/Aims: Light sensitivity is occasionally reported in myasthenia gravis patients, yet its prevalence, clinical characteristics, and impact on disease severity and quality of life remain insufficiently explored. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency, clinical characteristics, and the correlation of light sensitivity with myasthenia gravis severity and quality of life in patients. Methods: Myasthenia gravis patients consecutively admitted to Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli in Rome between March and October 2023 were considered for the study. A demographically matched group of healthy controls was also included. Patients and controls completed the Visual Light Sensitivity Questionnaire-8 (VLSQ-8). The patient cohort additionally received the Quantitative Myasthenia Gravis (QMG) score, the Myasthenia Gravis Activities of Daily Living (MG-ADL) scale, and the Myasthenia Gravis Quality-of-Life-15 (MG-QoL-15) questionnaires. Results: A total of 92 patients and 75 healthy controls participated. Light sensitivity was significantly more frequent among patients (36%, 33/92) than among controls (4%, 3/75). Patients with light sensitivity exhibited higher QMG (p < 0.0001), MG-ADL (p < 0.0001), and a decreased quality of life with higher MG-QoL-15 (p = 0.0003) scores than those without light sensitivity. Notably, light sensitivity severity positively correlated with diminished quality of life. Discussion: These findings suggest that light sensitivity may be a feature of myasthenia gravis, with clinically relevant implications for patient well-being. This underscores the value of screening for and managing light sensitivity in routine myasthenia gravis care. Proactive identification and treatment strategies aimed at light sensitivity may help enhance overall quality of life
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Assessing Commercial Tissue-Based Assays for Autoimmune Neurologic Disorders (II)
Full text linkBACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Detecting neural surface antibodies (NSAbs) is essential for diagnosing autoimmune encephalitis. The recommended diagnostic strategy involves initial screening with tissue-based assays (TBAs), followed by confirmation with cell-based assays (CBAs). While specialized centers use in-house TBAs, many clinical laboratories depend on commercial TBAs, whose accuracy is yet to be fully assessed. METHODS: We selected 92 CSF and 99 serum samples from patients with autoimmune encephalitis and NSAbs confirmed by in-house TBAs and CBAs (20 samples each for AMPAR, GABAAR, GABABR, IgLON5, LGI1, NMDAR, and CASPR2; 19 for mGluR5; 17 for DPPX; and 15 for mGluR1 antibodies), along with 50 CSF and 50 serum samples from negative controls. We assessed the performance of a commercial indirect immunofluorescence (IIF)-TBA (EUROIMMUN). Slides were evaluated as "positive" or "negative" by 2 experienced investigators and 2 less experienced raters. Discordant results were re-evaluated through interrater discussion and assessed using Cohen's kappa. RESULTS: The experienced raters agreed on 94% (133/142) of CSF and 88% (131/149) of serum classifications (Cohen's kappa = 0.87 and 0.75, respectively, p < 0.001). Among CSF samples, 75% (106/142) were correctly identified while 19% (27/142) were misclassified (13 false positives, 14 false negatives). Among serum samples, 66% (98/149) were correctly identified while 22% (33/149) were misclassified (11 false positives, 22 false negatives). The poorest performance was seen in detecting NMDAR, GABAAR, and mGluR5 Abs, which were not identified in 5 of 10, 6 of 10, and 5 of 9 serum samples and in 4 of 10, 5 of 10, and 5 of 10 CSF samples, respectively. The overall sensitivity of the commercial IIF-TBA was 84% for CSF and 76% for serum while the specificity was 72% for CSF and 73% for serum. Less experienced raters correctly identified 69% (98/142) of CSF samples and 73% (109/149) of serum samples and misclassified 13% (18/142) of CSF samples and 11% (16/149) of serum samples, and 18% (26/142) of CSF samples and 16% (24/149) of serum samples remained discordant. DISCUSSION: The diagnostic performance of EUROIMMUN IIF-TBA in detecting NSAbs in autoimmune encephalitis is suboptimal. NMDAR antibodies, among the most common NSAbs, can be missed in 50% of cases. This commercial TBA should not be used alone as a screening method nor as a confirmatory technique for NSAbs
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