The concept that epilepsy arises from an imbalance between excitatory and inhibitory influences in epileptogenic tissue has become fundamental to further investigations of the pathophysiology of this disorder. The primary observation motivating the study of Eid and colleagues is that glutamate levels are elevated in patients with mesial temporal sclerosis (MTS), perhaps the most common cause of medication-resistant epilepsy.
Martin and ONeill called attention to and commented upon a revised classification of higher-level gait disorders (HLGD) proposed by Liston and associates.
Shared pathophysiologic mechanisms for migraine, neuropathic pain, and epilepsy underscore the notion that antiepileptic drugs (AED) should be standard treatment for the former. Five new AEDs and their use in these nonepileptic painful disorders are summarized.
In August 1921, Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) was stricken with poliomyelitis, then also referred to as infantile paralysis. Afterward, he made a courageous, lifetime effort to overcome the ravages of the disease. In time, he helped create a foundation to help other polio victims, and he inspired, as well as directed, the March of Dimes program that eventually funded an effective polio vaccine.
Visual hallucinations and delusions are common in patients with moderate to advanced Parkinsons disease (PD). Typically fleeting images of people, children, or animals are easily ignored; however, hallucinations often become more intense and frequent, with loss of insight.
In this simple yet elegant, single-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study, 12 patients with McArdles disease were given a sucrose, or artificially sweetened placebo load, prior to aerobic exercise to determine if this might improve exercise tolerance. Average age of the 7 men and 5 women was 37 years, and all had lifelong exercise intolerance, episodic muscle cramps, and myoglobinuria triggered by exercise.
From October 2003 to Jan. 9, 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention received reports of 93 influenza-associated deaths among children younger than 18 years. The demands the annual flu season places on emergency department and urgent care facilities and the voracity of the current years epidemic have overwhelmed many physicians.
The death of a child is a terrifying, overwhelming experience for both parents and physicians. The unknown variables and the inability to reverse an etiology make the emergency department physician feel powerless and unable to give the parents a reason for the event. This article provides a comprehensive update for the ED physician and a review of the truths and myths about the condition known as SIDS.
