Clinical Characteristics of Early-Onset and Late-Onset Multiple Sclerosis in Patients from Lithuania.

Early-onset MS (EOMS) and late-onset MS (LOMS) differ in terms of symptom presentation, disease progression, and disability outcomes. This study aims to evaluate the clinical characteristics of patients with EOMS and LOMS in Lithuania. A retrospective analysis of patients' medical records was conducted at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas Clinics Department of Neurology.

Verticality perception in patients with active multiple sclerosis: The applicability of subjective visual vertical test and its modifications.

Background: Dizziness and balance disturbances are common in patients with MS. Subjective visual vertical (SVV) is a test of vestibular perception that allows clinicians to evaluate the integration of multiple sensory inputs for spatial orientation in the CNS. We hypothesize that central vestibular impairment caused by active MS lesions may be reflected in the modified SVV testing.

Phrenic Nerve Sonography Alterations in Patients with ALS: Insight with Clinical and Neurophysiological Findings.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, and although the diagnosis is primarily based on clinical criteria, ENMG, as the "gold standard", does not always show detectable changes. Therefore, our study suggests that alterations in echogenicity and heterogeneity of the phrenic nerve (PN) may serve as potential additional diagnostic tools for ALS. Our study included 32 patients in the ALS group and 64 individuals in the control group.

CXCL12 Gene Polymorphisms and Serum Levels: Associations with Multiple Sclerosis Prevalence and Clinical Parameters in Lithuania.

Our study aimed to investigate the associations between rs1029153, rs1801157, and rs2297630 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), CXCL12 protein levels, MS prevalence, and clinical parameters. This study included 250 individuals diagnosed with MS and 250 sex- and age-matched healthy control individuals from Lithuania. The SNPs were genotyped with real-time PCR-based assays.

Gene Polymorphism Associations with Multiple Sclerosis.

has a dual role in multiple sclerosis (MS), contributing to both protective and harmful effects. It activates immune cells, promotes the formation of inflammatory lesions in the central nervous system, and stimulates the production of other pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, leading to myelin destruction and neuronal damage. Our research focused on investigating the relationship between (rs1800630, rs1800629, and rs361525) gene polymorphisms and MS.

Exploring the Spectrum of Visual Illusions and Other Minor Hallucinations in Patients with Parkinson's Disease in Lithuania.

: Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with various non-motor symptoms, including minor hallucinations, comprising visual illusions and presence and passage hallucinations. Despite their occurrence, even in newly diagnosed PD patients, data regarding the prevalence and characteristics of minor hallucinations, visual illusions in particular, remain limited. The aim of this study was to address this knowledge gap by assessing the prevalence of minor hallucinations in PD patients, with a focus on visual illusions.

Investigating the Potential Influence of Genetic Variants and Protein Levels on Multiple Sclerosis Development.

The study aimed to investigate the association between the gene (rs860170, rs978739, rs1357949), TAS2R16 serum levels, and multiple sclerosis (MS). A total of 265 healthy control subjects and 218 MS patients were included in the study. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were tested by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

Pilot Study of the Total and Phosphorylated Tau Proteins in Early-Stage Multiple Sclerosis.

: Recent findings suggest that neurodegeneration starts early in the course of multiple sclerosis (MS) and significantly contributes to the progression of patients' disability. Tau is a microtubule-binding protein that is known to play a role in the pathophysiology of many neurodegenerative disorders. Newly emerging data on tau protein-induced neurodegenerative processes and its possible involvement in MS suggest that it may be involved in the pathology of early-stage MS.

Sonographic Phrenic Nerve Changes in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects both the upper and lower motor neurons in the nervous system, causing muscle weakness and severe disability. The progressive course of the disease reduces the functional capacity of the affected patients, limits daily activities, and leads to complete dependence on caregivers, ultimately resulting in a fatal outcome. Respiratory dysfunction mostly occurs later in the disease and is associated with a worse prognosis.

Role of Gene Polymorphisms and Serum Levels in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis.

Aim: The purpose of this work was to investigate the prevalence of rs3818292, rs3758391, and rs7895833 single nucleotide polymorphisms and SIRT1 serum levels associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the Lithuanian population.

Methods: A total of 250 MS patients and 250 healthy controls were included in the study. Genotyping was performed using the RT-PCR method.

The Influence of and Genetic Variants on the Susceptibility to Multiple Sclerosis.

Unlabelled: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. According to recent studies, cellular senescence caused by telomere shortening may contribute to the development of MS.

Aim Of The Study: Our aim was to determine the associations of rs1760904, rs1713418, rs12696304, rs35073794 gene polymorphisms with the occurrence of MS.

GAD65 Antibody-Associated Epilepsy.

Autoimmune processes are an increasingly recognized cause of seizures. Antibodies against neuronal surface antigens are implicated in the development of acute symptomatic seizures secondary to autoimmune encephalitis, whereas antibodies against intracellular antigens (anti-glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) and onconeural antibodies) are found in cases of autoimmune-associated epilepsy (AAE). AAE is described as isolated drug-resistant epilepsy without any specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or cerebrospinal fluid changes and with a very limited response to immunotherapy.

Characteristics of the Manifestation of Multiple Sclerosis in Children in Lithuania.

: Multiple sclerosis (MS) starts quite rarely in childhood, comprising just 3-10% of all diagnosed cases of MS population. The age of onset of the disease may be related to the initial phenotype and the prognosis of MS. The aim of the study is to assess the characteristics of the manifestation of MS in children.

Oligoclonal Band Status and Features of Radiological and Clinical Findings in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis in Lithuania.

: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a widely spread and debilitating disease with 2.8 million people worldwide currently affected. However, the exact pathogenesis of the disease and its progression remains incompletely understood.

Factors Related to the Progression of Clinically Isolated Syndrome to Multiple Sclerosis: A Retrospective Study in Lithuania.

Background and Objectives: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease which usually manifests as clinically isolated syndrome (CIS). Approximately 70% of patients with CIS progress to MS. Therefore, there is a pressing need to identify the most accurate predictive factors of CIS developing into MS, some of which could be a clear clinical phenotype of early MS as well as lesions in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), pathological findings in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and evoked potentials (EP) tests.

Gene Polymorphisms and IL-10 Serum Levels in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis in Lithuania.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system with features of demyelination and axonal degeneration at a young age. Genetic factors may play an important role in the development of multiple sclerosis. (1) Objective: To investigate IL-10 rs1800871, rs1800872, rs1800896, and IL-10 serum levels in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Effect of aging on vagus somatosensory evoked potentials and ultrasonographic parameters of the vagus nerve.

Vagus somatosensory evoked potentials (VSEP) and ultrasonography can be used to detect functional and structural changes of the vagus nerve (VN) that are hypothesized to be associated with neurodegenerative diseases. However, it has not yet been established whether age-related changes in the VN occur in the healthy population. In this pilot study we included healthy volunteers in the 26-30 and 51-55 age range who comprised the younger (n = 20) and older (n = 20) groups, respectively.

Pain Characteristics and Associations with Quality of Life in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis in Lithuania.

Background And Objectives: Even though pain in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is common and possibly associated with reduced quality of life, its exact prevalence and characteristics remain vaguely understood. We aimed to estimate the true extent of pain and its associations with quality of life in Lithuanian MS patients and to compare this data with that of a control group.

Materials And Methods: Data were collected prospectively at the Department of Neurology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kaunas Clinics.

Subjective visual vertical and visual dependency in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Background: Spatial orientation is an inherent ability governed by the complex integration of visual, vestibular and proprioceptive inputs. The degree to which an individual relies upon visual cues, as opposed to the vestibular or proprioceptive cues, is termed visual dependence. Although abnormal visual dependence has been documented in other neurological disorders, it is not known whether MS leads to visual dependence, and if so whether this is related to disease progression, clinical disability, or neuro-inflammatory burden in the central nervous system.

Ultrasonography of the Vagus Nerve in the Diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease.

Background: It is currently impossible to diagnose Parkinson's disease (PD) in the premotor phase even though at the time of motor symptom onset the number of already degenerated dopaminergic substantia nigra neurons is considerable. Degeneration of the dorsal nucleus of the vagus nerve (VN) has been reported early in the disease course, and it could lead to impaired function of the VN, resulting in certain nonmotor symptoms of PD. Therefore, we raised a hypothesis that the loss of VN neurons could result in a smaller diameter of the VN among PD patients.

Evaluating the functional and structural changes in the vagus nerve: Should the vagus nerve be tested in patients with atrial fibrillation?

One of the multiple factors believed to contribute to the initiation and maintenance of atrial fibrillation (AF) is altered activity of the autonomic nervous system. Debate continues about the role of the vagus nerve (CNX) in AF since its effect depends on the level of its activation as well as on simultaneous sympathetic activation. Surplus either vagal or sympathetic activity may rarely induce the development of AF; however, typically loss of balance between the both systems mediates the induction and maintenance of AF.

Clinical and diagnostic features of patients with familial multiple sclerosis.

Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating CNS disease. Most MS cases are sporadic, however about 20 percent of them are hereditary (Ramagopalan and Sadovnick, 2011). The incidence of familial MS is greater in regions with the highest prevalence of this disease (in North America, Europe) (Ramagopalan and Sadovnick, 2011).

Absolute blood eosinophil count could be a potential biomarker for predicting haemorrhagic transformation after intravenous thrombolysis for acute ischaemic stroke.

Background: Immune cells are involved in all stages of acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) and possess both neuroprotective and neurodamaging properties. It has been suggested that immune system activation after stroke may be associated with the development of haemorrhagic transformation (HT), which is the main complication limiting the clinical use of intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) for AIS. The purpose of our study was to analyse the association between absolute eosinophil count (AEC) at admission and the occurrence of HT after intravenous rtPA therapy for AIS.

Preclinical signs of Parkinson's disease: A possible association of Parkinson's disease with skin and hair features.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder, characterized by loss of dopaminergic neuromelanin containing neurons in the substantia nigra. Peripheral melanin, found in skin and hair, and neuromelanin appear to have some characteristics in common and share the same precursor for their synthesis; therefore, skin and hair features could be associated with PD. We hypothesize that earlier age at onset of hair greying, greater tendency to sunburn, difficulty tanning and dysregulation of sebum production are more common among PD patients due to genetically determined lower constitutive amounts of melanin and accumulation of α-synuclein in the skin, which leads to disrupted synthesis of peripheral melanin and dysregulated sebum secretion.