Seizures and cancer: drug interactions of anticonvulsants with chemotherapeutic agents, tyrosine kinase inhibitors and glucocorticoids.

Patients with cancer commonly experience seizures. Combined therapy with anticonvulsant drugs (AEDs) and chemotherapeutic drugs or tyrosine kinase inhibitors carries inherent risks on drug-drug interactions (DDIs). In this review, pharmacokinetic studies of AEDs with chemotherapeutic drugs, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and glucocorticoids are discussed, including data on maximum tolerated dose, drug clearance, elimination half-life, and organ exposure.

Seizures in oligodendroglial tumors.

Epilepsy develops in more than 70-90% of oligodendroglial tumors and represents a favorable indicator for long-term survival if present as the first clinical sign. Presence of IDH1 mutation is frequently associated with seizures in oligodendrogliomas, next to alterations of glutamate and GABA metabolism in the origin of glioma-associated epilepsy. Treatment by surgery or radiotherapy results in seizure freedom in about two-thirds of patients, and chemotherapy to a seizure reduction in about 50%.

[Practice guideline 'Management of patients with mild traumatic head/brain injury' in the Netherlands].

Objective: To evaluate the effect of the revised practice guideline 'Management of patients with mild traumatic head/brain injury' (MHI) in the Netherlands using the number of CT scans of the cerebrum, number of hospital admissions, and the number of intracranial traumatic findings on CT scan.

Design: Retrospective before-and-after study.

Method: A structured chart review over the 3-month period considerable time after implementation of the MHI guideline (study period) was compared with the 3-month-period before its introduction (control period).

Differential diagnosis of recurrent or bilateral peripheral facial palsy.

Objective: To describe the differential diagnosis of recurrent or bilateral peripheral facial palsy.

Method: Case report and literature review.

Results: Two patients with recurrent, alternating, peripheral facial palsy are described.

SPES/SCOPA and MDS-UPDRS: formulas for converting scores of two motor scales in Parkinson's disease.

Background: Motor impairment in Parkinson's disease (PD) can be evaluated with the Short Parkinson's Evaluation Scale/Scales for Outcomes in Parkinson's disease (SPES/SCOPA) and the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS). The aim of this study was to determine equation models for the conversion of scores from one scale to the other.

Methods: 148 PD patients were evaluated with the SPES/SCOPA-motor and the MDS-UPDRS motor examination.