Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry articles from June 2003

Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry archives from June 2003

Axonal injury in multiple sclerosis: renewed interest in axonal destruction in MS.(Editorial)
June 1, 2003... Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease, which implies that myelin sheaths are the primary target in the destructive process. However, this primary demyelinating process is inevitably associated with axonal injury and...

How common is dementia with Lewy bodies? Meeting consensus criteria for the diagnosis of DLB. (Editorial Commentary).
June 1, 2003... Establishing frequency figures for diseases for which there is no reliable biomarker during life is particularly difficult. As a result, various diagnostic criteria have been established to improve the accuracy of clinical diagnoses for the...

Felix Guyon 1831-1920. (Neurological Stamp).(urologist)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Guyon was a native of the Island of Reunion. He emigrated to France, studied medicine in Paris, and became a surgeon at Hopital Necker and professor of genitourinary surgery in Paris. Guyon was an outstanding urologist and a pioneer in...

Internet resources for neurologists. (Review).
June 1, 2003... This fourth and final review in the JNNP internet series summarises the essential internet resources for adult and paediatric clinical neurology, neuroradiology, and neurophysiology. This article is freely available on the JNNP website...

Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man OMIM: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez. (Neuronline).
June 1, 2003... This website is based on a definitive work on genetic disorders, Victor McKusick's Mendelian Inheritance in Man. But whereas the book is now four years old, OMIM is updated daily--as of January 2003 it included 14 120 references, gaining more...

Event based and time based prospective memory in Parkinson's disease. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: Patients with Parkinson's disease have been reported to have retrospective memory impairment, while prospective memory, which is memory for actions to be performed in the future, has not yet been investigated. Objective: To...

Using the SF-36 measure to compare the health impact of multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease with normal population health profiles. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To examine the relative impact of two chronic neurological disorders, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease, by comparing patients' scores on the medical outcomes study 36-item short form health survey (SF-36) with the health...

Alzheimer's disease: differences in technetium-99m HMPAO SPECT scan findings between early onset and late onset dementia. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To compare the HMPAO SPECT cerebral perfusion patterns in early and late onset Alzheimer's disease. Methods: Twenty patients with early onset disease (65 years) were studied. All patients fulfilled NINCDS-ADRDA clinical criteria...

Dementia with Lewy bodies according to the consensus criteria in a general population aged 75 years or older. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To estimate the prevalence of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) according to the consensus criteria in a general population aged 75 years or older. Methods: The "Kuopio 75+ study" is a population based health survey focused on the...

Neuroendocrine changes in patients with acute space occupying ischaemic stroke. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To evaluate neuroendocrine changes in critical care patients with acute space occupying hemispheric stroke. Methods: 22 patients with acute space occupying hemispheric stroke were studied [mean age 57.7 years; five women, 17...

Aetiological diagnosis of brain abscesses and spinal infections: application of broad range bacterial polymerase chain reaction analysis. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To evaluate the usefulness of the broad range bacterial rDNA polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method combined with DNA sequencing in the aetiological diagnosis of intracranial or spinal infections in neurosurgical patients. ...

Abnormalities on diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging performed several weeks after a minor stroke or transient ischaemic attack. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objectives: Diffusion weighted brain imaging (DWI) is used in acute stroke, and also shows an acute ischaemic lesion in most transient ischamic attack (TIA) patients scanned acutely. However, it may also be useful in identifying subacute...

Intra-arterial thrombolysis in 24 consecutive patients with internal carotid artery T occlusions. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objectives: To determine the safely, efficacy, and predictors of favourable outcome of intro-arterial thrombolysis in acute stroke attributable to internal carotid "T" occlusion Methods: The authors analysed 24 consecutive patients with T...

Should asymptomatic patients with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) be screened for cerebral vascular malformations? Data from 22 061 years of HHT patient life. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: The frequency of haemorrhage in individuals with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), 10% of whom will have cerebral arteriovenous (AV) malformations, could be high enough to justify screening. This would allow...

Association of neprilysin polymorphism with cerebral amyloid angiopathy. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objectives: The risk of sporadic cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) may be associated with genetic polymorphisms of molecules related to anabolism or catabolism of amyloid [beta] protein (A[beta]). The authors investigated whether a polymorphism...

Subdural haematoma: a potentially serious consequence of spontaneous intracranial hypotension. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: Spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) is characterised by postural headache and low opening pressure at lumbar puncture without obvious cause. Cranial magnetic resonance imaging often shows small subdural collections without...

Failure to detect Chlamydia pneumoniae DNA in cerebral aneursymal sac tissue with two different polymerase chain reaction methods. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: Chlamydia pneumoniae (C pneumoniae) is a common cause of a usually mild, community acquired pneumonia. This organism, however, can spread from the respiratory tract into other parts of the body and has been detected in up to 70% of...

Brain tissue oxygen guided treatment supplementing ICP/CPP therapy after traumatic brain injury. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To evaluate the effects of a brain tissue oxygen ([P.sub.ti][O.sub.2]) guided treatment in patients with matic brain injury. Methods: [P.sub.ti][O.sub.2] was monitored in 93 patients with severe traumatic brain injury. Forty...

Cerebrovascular pressure reactivity is related to global cerebral oxygen metabolism after head injury. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: After head injury, impaired cerebrovascular autoregulation has been associated with abnormally high or low cerebral blood flow. The physiological relevance of cerebral blood flow levels is difficult to assess in these patients,...

Vestibular activation by bone conducted sound. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To examine the properties and potential clinical uses of myogenic potentials to bone conducted sound. Methods: Myagenic potentials were recorded from normal volunteers, using bone conducted tone bursts of 7 ms duration and...

P53, mdm2, EGFR, and msh2 expression in paired initial and recurrent glioblastoma multiforme. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: The clinical course of glioblastoma multiforme is characterised by invasive growth and regular recurrence. Many genetic alteration have been identified in the genesis of the disease. However, information about immunohistochemical...

Normal jugular blub oxygen saturation. (Paper).
June 1, 2003... Background: Normal values of the jugular bulb oxygen saturation were obtained in 1942 and in 1963. Correct catheter positioning was not confirmed radiologically. Objectives: To replicate the measurements during angiographic catheterisation...

Sir David Ferrier MD, FRS. (Historical Note).(19th-century neurological researcher)(Biography)
June 1, 2003... Carpenter ranked Ferrier's cerebral localisation among the greatest advances in the physiology of the nervous system made in the past 50 years. It formed a direct link between Jackson and Sherrington, with both of whom he had worked. Born...

Systemic infection, interleukin 1[beta], and cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Activated microglia, the resident macrophages of the brain; are a feature of Alzheimer's disease. Animal models suggest that when activated microglia are further activated by a subsequent systemic infection this results in significantly raised...

Coexistence of CADASIL and Alzheimer's disease. (Short Report).(Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leucoenphalopathy)
June 1, 2003... Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leucoenphalopathy (CADASIL) is caused by point mutations in the Notch3 gene. Presenilins are proteins involved in the cleaving of both Notch and the amyloid precursor...

Predictors of cognitive impairment in advanced Parkinson's disease. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To investigate the cognitive profile of patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease and to determine the demographic and medical variables that contribute to the cognitive outcome. Design: Retrospective cohort analysis. ...

Hypertrophic olivary degeneration following pontine haemorrhage: hypertensive crisis or cavernous haemangioma bleeding? (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... The clinical and magnetic resonance (MR) features of hypertrophic olivary degeneration are described, along with a rare but treatable cause of this entity--pontine cavernous haemangioma. Hypertrophic olivary degeneration occurs after Focal...

Hemicraniectomy for large middle cerebral artery territory infarction: outcome in 19 patients. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Background: Large middle cerebral artery infarction accounts for 1 0-15% of all supratentorial infarctions and carries a mortality of 50% to 80%. Hemicraniectomy may be useful when optimal medical management has failed. Methods: Between...

Mononeuritis multiplex in diabetes mellitus: evidence for underlying immune pathogenesis. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Four patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus developed mononeuritis multiplex subacutely. Sural nerve biopsies showed multifocal axonal loss in all patients, with epineurial perivascular inflammation affecting small calibre vessels in three....

Coccidioidomycosis of the brain, mimicking en plaque meningioma. (Neurological Picture).
June 1, 2003... A 38 year old woman, originally from the Pacific Islands with a history of residence in south western United States, presented with new onset severe headaches. Past medical history included disseminated coccidioidomycosis involving cervical...

The clinicopathological spectrum of Rosenthal fibre encephalopathy and Alexander's disease: a case report and review of the literature. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Alexander's disease is a leucodystrophy that usually presents in early childhood, but can infrequently arise in adults. It is characterised pathologically by megalencephaly, demyelination, and the presence of numerous Rosenthal fibres. Mast...

BOLD fMRI activation induced by vagus nerve stimulation in seizure patients. (Short Report).(blood oxygenation level dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging)
June 1, 2003... Objective: To identify the cerebral activated regions associated with the vagus nerve stimulation in epilepsy patients. Design: Blood oxygenation level dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD fMRI) was employed to detect areas...

Risk of recurrence of cerebral venous and sinus thrombosis during subsequent pregnancy and puerperium. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To assess the risk of recurrence of cerebral venous and sinus thrombosis (CVST) during subsequent pregnancy and puerperium in women with previous cerebral venous occlusive disease. Methods: The authors retrospectively studied the...

Mental illness in new neurological patients. (Short Report).
June 1, 2003... Objective: To determine the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in new neurological inpatients and outpatients, and examine whether they are recognised, treated, or referred to psychiatric consultation. Methods:1 98 consecutive patients...

Letters.(case reports on central pontine myelinolysis, spastic movement disorder, intracranial hypotension, adrenomyeloneuropathy, acute anterior radiculitis, autoimmune bilateral vestibulopathy, and Nasu-Hakola disease)
June 1, 2003... Central pontine myelinolysis temporally related to hypophosphataemia Central pontine myelinolysis (CPM) is known to be associated with the rapid correction of severe hyponatraemia. However, there have been case reports of CPM occurring in...

Correspondence. (PostScript).(responses to articles in earlier issues on Parkinson's disease, head injuries, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and authors' replies)
June 1, 2003... Subthalamic deep brain stimulation for advanced Parkinson's disease: all that glitters is not gold I read with interest the article "Behavioural disorders, Parkinson's disease and subthalamic stimulation" by Houeto et al and the...

The Nobel Prize in Medicine and the Karolinska Institute. .(Book Review)
June 1, 2003... By Bengt Ljunggren and George W Bruyn (Pp 229, US$119.25). Published by Karger, Basel, 2002. ISBN 3.8055-7297-2 The considerable enjoyment to be had from this unusual book is not altogether to be anticipated from the title. It derives from...

The Parahippocampal Region: Organization and Role in Cognitive Function.(Book Review)
June 1, 2003... By M Witter and F Wouterlood (Pp 366, 69.50). Published by Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2002. ISBN 0-19-8509 17-0 The parahippocampal region is a curious place: it genuinely has the potential to be of interest to a variety of...

Cancer Neurology in Clinical Practice.(Book Review)
June 1, 2003... Edited by D Schiff and P Y Wen (Pp 650 US$175.00). The Humana Press, New Jersey, 2002 650. ISBN 0-89603-922-6 This is another welcome addition to the expanding number of neuro-oncology textbooks that have exploded onto the market in the...

Management in the emergency department: preparing people for the best. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Emergency departments have changed radically over the past 20 years, both in their mission and in the training and competence of their staff. They are now in a strong position to influence the initial experience of head injured patients and the...

Mild head injury: predicting who may need help. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Morbidity after mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) deserves attention because mild TBI occurs relatively often, accounting for mast TBI hospitalisations and for many disability days. Methodological research problems and clinical referral...

Early interventions: minimising post-concussional symptoms. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Post-concussional symptoms usually include problems of information processing and attention, which have an impact on memory and daily living skills. Many authorities argue that it is unusual for symptoms of minor or moderate concussional injury...

Neuropsychiatric sequelae of TBI: fact and fiction. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(traumatic brain injury)(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant public health problem. Despite this, very little serious attention is devoted to brain injury, and the lay public is quite ignorant of both the enormity of the problem and the nature of the sequelae...

Setting up an acquired brain injury service: who to help whom? (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Post-acute services for those living with the effects of acquired brain injury (ABI) have been slow to develop in the UK, despite significant developments in the early medical management of trauma and pathology. Currently, there is limited...

Case management: for long term conditions. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Ms Johnson will review the background and history of case management in the United Kingdom. She will describe the process of case management and provide examples of long term brain injury case management.

Factors determining return to work after severe traumatic brain injury. (BNPA Abstracts: Stepping Out After Brain Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Measuring success and outcome following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a must in rehabilitation and is also very much demanded by healthcare providers interested in measuring efficacy of treatment. Most TBI patients are in their second...

Experimental traumatic brain injury: biological processes and pharmacological possibilities. (BNPA Abstracts: Recovering From Head Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... The mechanisms underlying secondary or delayed cell death following traumatic brain injury are poorly understood. Recent evidence from experimental models suggests that widespread neuronal loss is progressive and continues in selectively...

Pathophysiological mechanisms of recovery after TBI: clues from functional MRI. (BNPA Abstracts: Recovering From Head Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(traumatic brain injury, magnetic resonance imaging)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an enormous public health challenge. The common sequelae of TBI include changes in personality, behaviour, and cognition. Overcoming these challenges often presents the greatest difficulty for individuals in...

Outcome following children's head injury and its impact on family life. (BNPA Abstracts: Recovering From Head Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Head injury in childhood can affect cognition, behaviour, and emotional functioning quite profoundly depending on the severity of the injury. In some ways outcome is similar to that in adults, but it also differs in a number of important ways....

Head injury as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. (BNPA Abstracts: Recovering From Head Injury).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... In a proportion of those who suffer a severe head injury amyloid occumulates in the brain. Head injury therefore might be a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. Only a very few follow up studies have looked at this, and they have all been...

Medico-legal aspects of neuropsychiatry. (BNPA Abstracts: Medico-Legal Aspects of Neuropsychiatry).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... For many years the attitude of the law to claims for compensation involving psychiatric damage has been marked by scepticism. It has always been easier to recover for physical injury than for psychiatric harm. Despite occasional judicial...

Neuropsychiatry in the criminal and appeal courts. (BNPA Abstracts: Medico-Legal Aspects of Neuropsychiatry).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Neuropsychiatrists have important contributions to make not only in civil courts in compensation and negligence cases, but also in criminal courts and the Court of Appeal. In the present talk, this will be illustrated with regard to four...

Retrograde amnesia and post-traumatic amnesia: a critical review. (BNPA Abstracts: Medico-Legal Aspects of Neuropsychiatry).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... This talk will primarily focus on retrograde amnesia and post-traumatic amnesia in patients with closed head injury, but some consideration will also be given to cases of open head injury. Issues of terminology and conceptual issues will be...

Whiplash injuries--the state of the controversy. (BNPA Abstracts: Medico-Legal Aspects of Neuropsychiatry).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Whiplash injuries occur in more than one million people in the United States every year. A small minority complain of symptoms that persist for years, often with no clear demonstrable cause. Mast modern work recognises that the late whiplash...

Sexual behaviour in patients with Huntington's disease. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Previous reports in the medical literature, including that of Huntington himself, have suggested that Huntington's disease (HD) is associated with hypersexuality. However, the only study to examine the issue systematically using modern...

De Clerambault's syndrome and executive dysfunction: a case report. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Case History: A male case of erotomania spanning a 30 year period is described. The patient first presented to psychiatric services at the age of 66 years after breaching a restraining order brought under the Harassment Act 1997. Stalking...

Hypersexuality and Parkinson's disease. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Sexual disorders arising in neuropsychiatric conditions, such as Parkinson's disease, can give insights into the psychobiology of sexual behaviour. We report on six patients with Parkinson's disease who developed a marked increase in both...

22Q11 deletion syndrome: a search for clues to the origins of schizophrenia. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: To investigate neurodevelopmental abnormalities in 22q11 deletion syndrome (22q11DS), a group at very high risk for schizophrenia, via multiple methodologies including auditory event-related EEG. Methods: Adolescents with 22q11DS...

Psychotropic medications in neurobehavioural treatment of aggression after acquired brain injury: efficacy and incidence of side effects. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Psychotropic medications are frequently used in conjunction with neurobehavioural treatments for aggressive behaviours after neurological injury. Efficacy and side effects for two classes of psychotropic medications are reported. ...

Do neuropsychological measures predict functional outcome in head injury patients? (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: To investigate whether standard measures of cognitive function predict level of functional ability in head injury (HI) patients and increase knowledge of factors associated with functional outcome, management, and rehabilitation. ...

Developing a comprehensive neuropsychiatry service: the stoke model. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Provide on account of the North Staffordshire Neuropsychiatry Service. Methods: Present a description of the components of the service, information on clinical activities over a 12 month period including number, source, and diagnosis...

Hashimoto's encephalopathy: an organic cause of neuropsychiatric illness in adolescence. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Described is possibly the first reported case of Hashimoto's encephalopathy in the child psychiatric literature. We report a 14 year oid case with a broad and complex presentation. Methods: Our patient presented with a 9 month history...

Effect of galvanic skin response (GSR) biofeedback treatment in patients with epilepsy. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: Behavioural interventions including biofeedback represent an alternative therapeutic axis in the management of drug refractory epilepsy. Based on increased understanding of the physiological relationship between peripheral autonomic and...

The treatment of camptocormia--a case example. (BNPA Abstracts: Members' Papers).(British Neuropsychiatry Association)(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Aims: This paper aims to review the different presentations, characteristic features, and available treatment options for the unusual disorder of camptocormia. Also, to describe our experience in using the anti-psychotic medication,...

The anatomical basis of desire and addiction. (BNPA Abstracts: The Neuropsychiatry of Love (A Feast for Valentine's Day)).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Animals work for rewards, such as food and sex, for a variety of reasons. They learn that they like a reinforcer, and that their actions can cause the reinforcer to be delivered to them; integrating these two pieces of information causes them...

Erotomania and the pathologies of love. (BNPA Abstracts: The Neuropsychiatry of Love (A Feast for Valentine's Day)).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... 19th century psychiatry recognised three types of erotomania: the love melancholies produced by rejected or unrequited love; nymphomania and satyriasis; and finally delusional beliefs of being loved by someone with whom, in reality, there was...

Cerebral disorders and disturbances of sexual function. (BNPA Abstracts: The Neuropsychiatry of Love (A Feast for Valentine's Day)).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Lesions of the spinal cord and the peripheral and autonomic nervous systems leading to disorders of sexual function are well recognised, but the same is not true of cerebral conditions, which have to some extent been neglected in this regard,...

Biological bases of gender identity disorder (transsexualism). (BNPA Abstracts: The Neuropsychiatry of Love (A Feast for Valentine's Day)).(British Neuropsychiatry Association )(Author Abstract)
June 1, 2003... Although precise biological origins of transsexualism remain elusive, research is hot on the trail. The Gender Identity Clinic at Charing Cross Hospital, the world's largest, permits research of uniquely sized samples (in the hundreds). Four...

Neuromuscular disease.
June 1, 2003... This supplement tackles the lower levels of the nervous system, the peripheral nerves, the neuromuscular junction, and muscle diseases. Motor neurone disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a disorder of both upper and lower motor neurones, will...

Erratum.(Correction Notice)
June 1, 2003... Schott JM, Fox NC, Rossor MN. Genetics of the dementias. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2002;73(suppl II):ii27-31. In this article, it was stated that the error size of the prion protein gene was 100 bp when it is approximately 750 bp.

Clinical evaluation and investigation of neuropathy.
June 1, 2003... The assessment and investigation of a possible neuropathy is one of the most common clinical problems facing the general neurologist. Studies of the prevalence of neuropathy in the community are rare but suggest a figure of between 2-8%, (1)...

Management of inflammatory neuropathies.
June 1, 2003... Inflammatory neuropathies are uncommon but important to diagnose because they are treatable. This review summarises the clinical approach to diagnosis and treatment of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), chronic inflammatory demyelinating...

The diabetic neuropathies: types, diagnosis and management.
June 1, 2003... Although over the years the considerable breakthroughs made in our understanding of diabetic neuropathy has come from both neurologists and diabetologists, in recent times (in the UK) it is diabetologists that have assumed the main clinical...

Focal peripheral neuropathies.
June 1, 2003... Focal peripheral neuropathies are not at the fashionable end of the neurological street. However they are important, as they are very common, sometimes disabling, and often treatable. They can also be a source of confusion when they occur in...

Diagnosis and treatment of inflammatory muscle diseases.
June 1, 2003... The inflammatory myopathies are rare. No accurate figures for incidence or prevalence are available but if one takes the two most common conditions, dermatomyositis and inclusion body myositis, their combined annual incidence is probably less...

The neuromuscular junction disorders.
June 1, 2003... Neuromuscular junction (NMJ) disorders result from destruction, malfunction or absence of one or more key proteins involved in neuromuscular transmission, illustrated diagrammatically in fig 1. The most common pathology is antibody mediated...

Evaluating muscle symptoms.
June 1, 2003... The correct interpretation of neuromuscular symptoms is critical, with terms such as fatigue or weakness rarely being used with their medical sense. The Oxford English Dictionary defines "weak" as "wanting in moral strength for endurance or...

Systematic reviews to help guide clinical practice in neuromuscular disease.
June 1, 2003... Doctors face an impossible task in appraising, synthesising, and regularly revisiting the evidence, even in a relatively small field such as neuromuscular disease. Randomised controlled trials are the most powerful tool for assessing and...