Neurology Alert articles from July 2003

Neurology Alert archives from July 2003

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension may not be idiopathic. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Farb RI, et al. Idiopathic intracranial hypertension: The prevalence and morphology of sinovenous stenosis. Neurology. 2003;30:1418-1424. THIS IS AN ELEGANT STUDY, WHICH EXAMINED WHETHER sinovenous obstruction may play a role in...

Congenital myasthenia and ChAT. (Abstract & Commentary).(choline acetyltransferase)
July 1, 2003... Source: Schmidt C, et al. Congenital myasthenia syndrome due to a novel missense mutation in the gene encoding choline acetyltransferase. Neuromuscul Disord. 2003; 13:245-251. CONGENITAL MYASTHENIC SYNDROMES (CMS) ARE present at birth. Some...

AD vaccine alters disease and pathology in humans. (Abstracts & Commentary).(Alzheimer's disease)
July 1, 2003... Sources: Nicoll JA, et al. Nat Med. 2003;9(4):448-452; Hock C, et al. Neuron. 2003;38:547-554. TWO RECENT REPORTS STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT Elan's AN-1792 Alzheimer's "vaccine," which was withdrawn from clinical trials after several...

Determinants of survival in patients with vertebrobasilar diseases. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Qureshi AI, et al. Stroke-free survival and its determinants in patients with symptomatic vertebrobasilar stenosis: A multicenter study. Neurosurgery. 2003;52:1033-1040. INTRACRANIAL BALLOON ANGIOPLASTY AND STENT placement now are...

A new risk factor for cardiovascular disease. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Shishehbor MJ, et al. Association of nitrotyrosine levels with cardiovascular disease and modulation by statin therapy. JAMA. 2003;289:1675-1680. THIS IS A STUDY THAT EXAMINED LEVELS OF nitrotyrosine, a specific marker for protein...

Talk more, examine less. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Dooley JM, et al. The utility of the physical examination and investigations in the pediatric neurology examination. Pediatr Neural. 2003;28:96-99. JN THIS ORIGINAL STUDY, 500 CONSECUTIVE PEDIATRIC referrals for neurologic...

Early axonal injury in multiple sclerosis. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Filippi M, et al. Evidence for widespread axonal damage at the earliest clinical stage of multiple sclerosis. Brain. 2003;126:433-437. FILIPPI AND COLLEAGUES PERFORMED CONVENTIONAL brain MRIs and whole-brain N-acetylaspartate...

Tightening the belt on hypertension. (Abstract & Commentary).
July 1, 2003... Source: Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC 7). US Department of Health and Human Services. NIH Publication No. 03-5233. May 2003. HYPERTENSION IS A...

GBS and GM1b antibody. (Abstract & Commentary).(Guillain-Barre syndrome)
July 1, 2003... Source: Ogawara K, et al. Anti-GM1b antibody is associated with acute motor axonal neuropathy and Campylobacter jejuni infection. J Neurol Sci. 2003;210:41-45. ANTI-GANGLIOSIDE PERIPHERAL NERVE ANTIBODIES IN Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS)...

Influenza vaccination and reduction in hospitalizations. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Source: Nichol KL, et al. N Engl J Med. 2003;348:1322-1332. DESPITE THE FACT THAT INFLUENZA and its consequences are well recognized, the number of at-risk individuals for serious sequelae to an influenza infection who receive vaccination...

Screening men for prostate and colorectal cancer. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).
July 1, 2003... Source: Sirovich BE, et al JAMA 2003;289:1414-1420. PROSTATE CANCER (P-CA) AND COLorectal cancer (C-CA) do not share the same evidence base for potential efficacy in reducing mortality. For P-CA, there remain no data to confirm whether...

Weight loss in CHF and treatment with ACE-I. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).(congestive heart failure, ACE inhibitors)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Source: Anker S, et al. Lancet. 2003;361:1077-1083. WEIGHT LOSS TO THE DEGREE OF cachexia complicates cancer, some infectious diseases (eg, HIV, thyrotoxicosis), and less obviously, perhaps, heart failure (CHF). It has been previously...

Impaired fasting glucose vs impaired glucose tolerance. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Source: Schianca GPO, et al. Diabetes Care. 2003;26:1333-1337. IN THE ABSENCE OF POSTGLUCOSE load measurements, most clinicians diagnose diabetes mellitus (DM) on the basis of an elevated fasting blood glucose (FBG), most recently...

Risk stratification in Long-QT syndrome. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Source: Priori SG, et al. N Eng J Med. 2003;348:1866-1874. ON EKG, PROLONGATION OF THE QT interval (QTI) may be a marker for increased susceptibility to life-threatening arrhythmias. With normal heart rates (60-100), the QTI (from the...

EBCT, motivation, behavioral change, and cardiovascular risk profile. (Clinical Briefs in Primary Care).(electron beam coronary tomography)
July 1, 2003... Source: O'Malley PG, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:2215-2223. IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED THAT As MUCH AS of clinical CHD can be predicted on the basis of traditionally recognized risk factors (eg, lipids, BP, smoking). Because of the ponderous effect of...

HRT, estrogen, and postmenopausal women: year-old WHI study continues to raise questions. (Pharmacology Watch).(hormone replacement therapy, Women's Health Initiative)
July 1, 2003... The Women's Health Initiatives (WHI) was halted 1 year ago, but fallout from this landmark study continues. The study was designed to identify the risks or benefits of estrogen plus progesterone vs placebo in healthy postmenopausal women. More...