Persistence of Neuronal Alterations in Alcohol-Dependent Patients at Conclusion of the Gold Standard Withdrawal Treatment: Evidence From ERPs.

One of the main challenges for clinicians is to ensure that alcohol withdrawal treatment is the most effective possible after discharge. To address this issue, we designed a pilot study to investigate the efficacy of the rehabilitation treatment on the main stages of information processing, using an electroencephalographic method. This topic is of main importance as relapse rates after alcohol withdrawal treatment remain very high, indicating that established treatment methods are not fully effective in all patients in the long run.

Assessment of mental workload: A new electrophysiological method based on intra-block averaging of ERP amplitudes.

The present study contributes to the current debate about electrophysiological measurements of mental workload. Specifically, the allocation of attentional resources during different complexity levels of tasks and its changes over time are of great interest. Therefore, we investigated mental workload using tasks varying in difficulty during an auditory oddball target paradigm.

Neurophysiological changes during shortening osteotomies of the spine.

Background Context: Kyphotic deformities with sagittal imbalance of the spine can be treated with spinal osteotomies. Those procedures are known to have a high incidence of neurological complications, in particular at the thoracic level. Motor evoked potentials (MEPs) have been widely used in helping to avoid major neurological deficits postoperatively.

A CT-based study investigating the relationship between pedicle screw placement and stimulation threshold of compound muscle action potentials measured by intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring.

Purpose: Neurophysiological monitoring aims to improve the safety of pedicle screw placement, but few quantitative studies assess specificity and sensitivity. In this study, screw placement within the pedicle is measured (post-op CT scan, horizontal and vertical distance from the screw edge to the surface of the pedicle) and correlated with intraoperative neurophysiological stimulation thresholds.

Methods: A single surgeon placed 68 thoracic and 136 lumbar screws in 30 consecutive patients during instrumented fusion under EMG control.

Reversible acquired epileptic frontal syndrome and CSWS suppression in a child with congenital hemiparesis treated by hemispherotomy.

A boy with a right congenital hemiparesis due to a left pre-natal middle cerebral artery infarct developed focal epilepsy at 33 months and then an insidious and subsequently more rapid, massive cognitive and behavioural regression with a frontal syndrome between the ages of 4 and 5 years with continuous spike-waves during sleep (CSWS) on the EEG. Both the epilepsy and the CSWS were immediately suppressed by hemispherotomy at the age of 5 years and 4 months. A behavioural-cognitive follow-up prior to hemispherotomy, an per-operative EEG and corticography and serial post-operative neuropsychological assessments were performed until the age of 11 years.

Opposite effects of internal globus pallidus stimulation on pallidal neurones activity.

Besides clinical efficacy, the mechanisms of action of deep brain stimulation (DBS) are still debated. To shed light on this complex issue, we have taken the opportunity to record the response of globus pallidus internus (GPi) neurones to 100 Hz stimulations in a case of Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LNS) where four pallidal electrodes were implanted. Three types of response were observed, 2/19 neurones were unaffected by DBS.

Simultaneous multilobar electrocorticography (mEcoG) and scalp electroencephalography (scalp EEG) during intracranial vascular surgery: a new approach in neuromonitoring.

Objective: Intraoperative neuromonitoring for intracranial vascular surgery is primarily aimed at detecting early ischemic changes to prevent subsequent infarction. Despite various neurophysiological approaches detection of early and focal ischemic changes remains difficult. This study explores the feasibility and sensitivity of intraoperative monitoring using surface EEG (scalp EEG) and multilobar Electrocorticography (mEcoG) recording during intracranial vascular procedures.

Quality index for the quantification of the information recorded along standard microelectrode tracks to the subthalamic nucleus in parkinsonian patients.

Objective: To quantify the usefulness of the neuronal activity recorded on a standard microelectrode track to the subthalamic nucleus (STN) for the determination of the transition between the thalamus and the STN.

Methods: The study is based on analysis of 689 extracelullar single units recorded on 70 tracks passing through the thalamus and the STN. Using four neuron parameters that were correlated with electrode depth, a quality index (QI) for each track was computed and compared with the subjective assessment by the electrophysiologist of the track quality.

Recording of ventral posterior lateral thalamus neuron response to contact heat evoked potential in patient with neurogenic pain.

Microrecording of single unit response to contact heat-evoked potential (CHEP) were performed in right ventral posterior lateral (VPL) thalamus during deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery in a patient with chronic neurogenic pain. In our patient, neurons (n = 10) recorded in the ventral thalamus fired at a higher rate of 40 Hz compared to neurons recorded in Parkinsonian patients (24 Hz). Contact heat was applied by a fast heating and cooling probe of 5 cm2 area on the dermatome C6 territory of the left hand.

Intractable reflex audiogenic epilepsy successfully treated by peri-insular hemispherotomy.

We report a case of an infantile hemiplegia seizure syndrome (IHSS) that presented with intractable reflex audiogenic startle epilepsy which in itself is an uncommon form of seizure disorder. Peri-insular hemispherotomy provided complete seizure control. Also of particular interest was that this syndrome resulted from an iatrogenic brain injury sustained during the course of a caesarian section.

Effect of deep brain stimulation of GPI on neuronal activity of the thalamic nucleus ventralis oralis in a dystonic patient.

Objective: To record the possible effect of acute deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the globus pallidus internus (GPI) on the neuronal activity of the ventralis oralis anterior (VOA) nucleus of the thalamus.

Methods: Under general propofol anaesthesia, extracelullar single unit recordings were performed in VOA of a post-anoxic dystonic patient previously implanted with GPI located electrodes for chronic DBS.

Results: Neurons recorded in the VOA could be classified in two cell subpopulations: a high firing rate (16.

Facial expressions modulate the time course of long latency auditory brain potentials.

Long latency auditory brain potentials were recorded while subjects listened to bi-syllabic words spoken with an emotional expression and concurrently viewed congruent or incongruent facial expressions. Analysis of the auditory waveforms suggests the existence of a positive deflection around 240 ms post-stimulus with a clear posterior topography (the P2b component). This potential is subsequent upon the modality-specific auditory N1-P2 components and precedes the amodal N2-P3 complex.