Is there a link between exertional heat stroke and susceptibility to malignant hyperthermia?

Objective: The identification of a predisposition toward malignant hyperthermia (MH) as a risk factor for exertional heat stroke (EHS) remains a matter of debate. Such a predisposition indicates a causal role for MH susceptibility (MHS) after EHS in certain national recommendations and has led to the use of an in vitro contracture test (IVCT) to identify the MHS trait in selected or unselected EHS patients. The aim of this study was to determine whether the MHS trait is associated with EHS.

[Unexplicated neuropsychiatric disorders: Do not ignore dysimmune encephalitis. A case report of a dysimmune encephalitis with anti-leucine rich glioma inactivated 1 (LGI-1) antibodies].

Introduction: Anti-leucine rich glioma inactivated 1 encephalitis is a common and a treatable etiology of autoimmune encephalitis. Its diagnosis is a challenge because the initial diagnostic work-up is often normal.

Case Report: A 48-year-old man experienced cognitive and behavioral troubles, facio-brachial dystonic seizures and a syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion.

Report of 182 cases of exertional heatstroke in the French Armed Forces.

Objectives: Exertional heatstroke (EHS) remains a major problem for the military. The aim of our study was to describe medical history and clinical and biological features of EHS in a large military cohort.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study among military subjects admitted to the Military Teaching Hospital Laveran for EHS from 2004 to 2006.

Is critical illness polyneuropathy associated with decreased heart rate variability?

Introduction: This pilot study assessed the association between critical illness polyneuropathy (CIP) and decreased heart rate variability (HRV) in intensive care patients.

Methods: All patients admitted to the intensive care unit and expected to be ventilated for at least 72 hours were included and underwent weekly electromyograms and HRV analyses for three weeks. HRV was assessed by time domain analysis of 24h recording electrocardiograms, and alterations in HRV were assessed as the square root of the mean squared differences of successive RR intervals (RMSSD) ≤ 15.

[Optic neuritis attributable to Mycoplasma pneumoniae].

Optic neuritis (ON) is an inflammatory disease whose etiology remains obscure. We report a case of ON attributable to Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP). A 26-year-old man presented a sudden onset bilateral loss of visual acuity, without any history of pulmonary or ear-nose-throat infection.

[Cranial pachymeningitis or unknown origin].

Pachymeningitis of unknown origin is uncommon and is usually associated with headaches, cranial nerve lesions and cerebellar ataxia. Magnetic resonance imaging is particularly contributive to diagnosis. The default diagnosis must however be confirmed by brain biopsy.

[Peripheral neuropathies caused by disulfiram].

Disulfirame is a rare cause of peripheral neuropathy in subjects with chronic alcoholism. We report here a case in a 42-year-old man and present the main clinical features and electrophysiological and pathology results. Disulfamine-induced peripheral neuropathy is dose-dependent and never occurs below 250 mg/d (1/2 tables of Espéral*).

[Unusual case of bilateral optic neuritis in Lyme neuroborreliosis].

The most common manifestations of Lyme disease are neurologic and rheumatologic, but ophthalmologic lesions can also occur and may even be dominant. The authors describe a case of bilateral optic neuropathy associated with Lyme borreliosis that quickly led to near-total blindness. In addition to a loss in visual acuity and field bilateral papillary edema was documented by angiofluorography.