The "SALPARE study" of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage: part 1.

Background: Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a devastating type of stroke with a huge impact on patients and families. Expanded use of oral anticoagulants and ageing population might contribute to an epidemiological change. In view of these trends, we planned a study to obtain a contemporary picture and identify early prognostic factors to improve secondary prevention.

Development and validation of the Myasthenia Gravis TeleScore (MGTS).

Objective: The aim of our study was to validate the Myasthenia Gravis TeleScore (MGTS), a scale for the evaluation of MG patients in telemedicine.

Introduction: COVID-19 pandemic has boosted telemedicine in clinical practice. It could be crucial in the care of neurological patients with chronic disease.

Validation of the Italian version of the Myasthenia Gravis Impairment Index (MGII).

Objective: To validate the Italian version of the Myasthenia Gravis Impairment Index (MGII).

Introduction: MGII is a recent promising measure developed for MG patient evaluation. It includes a clinical severity evaluation and a patient-reported questionnaire.

Hypomethylating Agents (HMAs) as Salvage Therapy in Relapsed or Refractory AML: An Italian Multicentric Retrospective Study.

Data on the use of azacytidine and decitabine as salvage therapy for acute myeloid leukemia are limited. We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of 100 patients treated with hypomethylating agents (HMA) as salvage therapy in nine Italian institutions. A total of 24% of patients obtained a response to HMA (CR, PR, or CRi), while 26% showed a stable disease (SD); 50% of patients experienced progressive disease.

Spinal Meningiomas: Influence of Cord Compression and Radiological Features on Preoperative Functional Status and Outcome.

Background: Radiological parameters predicting the postoperative neurological outcome after resection of a spinal meningioma (SM) are poorly studied, with controversial results.

Methods: Observational multicenter cohort (2011-2018) of adult patients undergoing surgery for resection of SM. Tumor-canal volume ratio (TCR), the areas related to the cord and tumor occupancy at maximum compression, the presence of dural tail, calcifications, signs of myelopathy, and postoperative cord expansion were compared with the modified McCormick scale (mMCS) preoperative and at follow-up.

Progressive brachial plexus enlargement in hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis.

Axonal polyneuropathy is the main feature of hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv). Nerve morphological abnormalities have been reported, but longitudinal changes have never been assessed. We performed a prospective widespread nerve ultrasound evaluation and nerve cross-sectional area (CSA) was compared with baseline data in both ATTRv patients and pre-symptomatic carriers.

EEG Fractal Analysis Reflects Brain Impairment after Stroke.

Stroke is the commonest cause of disability. Novel treatments require an improved understanding of the underlying mechanisms of recovery. Fractal approaches have demonstrated that a single metric can describe the complexity of seemingly random fluctuations of physiological signals.

Outcome measures and treatment effectiveness in late onset myasthenia gravis.

Background: Recently different subtypes of myasthenia gravis (MG) have been described. They differ for clinical features and pathogenesis but the prognosis and response to treatment is less clear. The aim of the study was to evaluate outcome and treatment effectiveness including side effects in late onset MG (LOMG) compared with early onset MG (EOMG).

Association of Multiple Sclerosis with PM 2.5 levels. Further evidence from the highly polluted area of Padua Province, Italy.

Background: Fifty years of epidemiological survey and intra-regional differences in prevalence suggest that environmental factors may be associated with increased multiple sclerosis (MS) risk in Northern Italy. Based on the findings of a previous study carried out in the highly polluted Padan Plain, we further explored the relationship between PM2.5 levels and MS prevalence by comparing bordering areas characterized by quite different environmental conditions, namely the Municipality of Padua and the special protected zone (SPZ) of the Euganean Hills Regional Park, located 15 km from the City.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Pleural Fluid Cytology, Carcinoembryonic Antigen and C-Reactive Protein Together in Patients With Pulmonary Metastases and Malignant Pleural Effusion.

Background/aim: Pleural effusion (PE) has a heterogeneous aetiology, and differential diagnosis between benign and malignant disease may require invasive procedures in up to 60% of cases. The sensitivity of pleural cytology is limited, and several strategies have been tested to reduce the need of invasive diagnostic approaches. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of pleural fluid cytology, compared to, and combined with, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), C reactive protein (CRP), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assay of pleural fluid (PF) in patients with a history of cancer, exudative non-purulent PE, and suspicion of malignant PE on imaging studies.

Visual cortex changes in children with sickle cell disease and normal visual acuity: a multimodal magnetic resonance imaging study.

The visual system is primarily affected in sickle cell disease (SCD), and eye examination is recommended starting in late childhood. So far, to our knowledge, all studies have focused on the retina, neglecting the changes that might be present in the cortical portion of the visual system. We performed a multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) evaluation of the visual cortex in 25 children with SCD (mean age: 12·3 ± 1·9 years) and 31 controls (mean age: 12·7 ± 1·6 years).

Nerve ultrasound in hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis: red flags and possible progression biomarkers.

Background: Diagnostic delay of hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv, v for variant) prevents timely treatment and, therefore, concurs to the mortality of the disease. The aim of the present study was to explore with nerve ultrasound (US) possible red flags for early diagnosis in ATTRv patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and/or polyneuropathy and in pre-symptomatic carriers.

Methods: Patients and pre-symptomatic carriers with a TTR gene mutation were enrolled from seven Italian centers.

Ultrasound Examination of the Pupil - A New Tool for the Neuro-Ophthalmological Assessment.

Background:  Pupil examination represents a diagnostic and prognostic test in the management of several neurological diseases. Infrared video pupillometry (IVP) is the gold standard, since it is not routinely available, a noninvasive bedside ultrasound assessment has been proposed as an alternative. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and reproducibility of ultrasound pupillometry (UP) in comparison with IVP.

Headache in beta-thalassemia: An Italian multicenter clinical, conventional MRI and MR-angiography case-control study.

Objectives: A strikingly increased headache prevalence was recently noted in Sri Lankan beta-thalassemia patients, raising several concerns regarding long-term neurological involvement in this condition.

Methods: We interviewed on headache occurrence and characteristics 102 Italian beta-thalassemia patients and 129 healthy controls. 3T-MRI, MR-angiography, MR-venography, cognitive and psychiatric findings were considered.

Short-wave diathermy in the clinical management of musculoskeletal disorders: a pilot observational study.

Musculoskeletal disorders are the most common cause of pain and functional limitation in the general population. The study aim was  to evaluate short-wave diathermy (SWD) effects on pain and quality of life in people with musculoskeletal disorders. Eighty participants (31 men, mean age 56 ± 12.

Prevalence of low back pain and its effect on health-related quality of life in 409 scholar adolescents from the Veneto region.

Low back pain (LBP) is a common condition with profound effects on well-being. We aimed to define the prevalence and the characteristics of LBP and to investigate its impact on the quality of life (QoL) of 409 students (265 females and 144 males), all high-school adolescents from the Veneto region. LBP was measured with a structured, self-report questionnaire, while the SF-36 questionnaire was used to measure physical and mental QoL.

Limitations in daily activities and general perception of quality of life: Long term follow-up in patients with anti-myelin-glycoprotein antibody polyneuropathy.

In this study, we assessed the modifications over time of daily activities and quality of life (QoL) in 32 subjects with anti-myelin-glycoprotein (MAG) antibody neuropathy. A widespread panel including clinical scores and patient-reported questionnaires, in compliance of the terms by the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) of the World Health Organization (WHO), was employed at enrollment (T0) and at follow-up evaluation (T1) after a mean interval of 15.4 ± 5.

Conventional brain MRI features distinguishing limbic encephalitis from mesial temporal glioma.

Purpose: Radiological hallmark of autoimmune limbic encephalitis (LE) is a hyperintense signal in MRI T2-weighted images of mesial temporal structures. We aimed to identify conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features that can help distinguish LE from temporal glioma.

Methods: Brain MRIs of 25 patients affected by antibody-positive autoimmune LE, 24 patients affected by temporal glioma (tumor group), and 5 negative controls were retrospectively blindly evaluated in random order.

No evidence of increased cerebrovascular involvement in adult neurologically-asymptomatic β-Thalassaemia. A multicentre multimodal magnetic resonance study.

Multi-factorial causes jeopardize brain integrity in β-thalassaemia. Intracranial parenchymal and vascular changes have been reported among young β-thalassaemia patients but conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings are contradictory making early MRI and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA)/venography monitoring a matter of debate. This study prospectively investigated 75 neurologically asymptomatic β-thalassaemia patients (mean-age 35·2 ± 10·7 years; 52/75 transfusion-dependent; 41/75 splenectomised) using a 3T magnetic resonance scanner; clinical, laboratory and treatment data were also collected.

D-KEFS ST Failure Identifies Multiple Sclerosis Patients With Worse Objective and Self-Perceived Physical and Cognitive Disability.

The Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Test (BRB-NT) does not explore the executive functions. We combined BRB-NT and Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System Sorting Test (D-KEFS ST) to obtain a more comprehensive evaluation of cognitive impairment in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. 137 Relapsing Remitting MS (RRMS) patients underwent a detailed neuropsychological assessment including BRB-NT, D-KEFS ST and self-administrated questionnaires, namely the Multiple Sclerosis Neuropsychological Questionnaire (MSNQ), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and the Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition (BDI-II).

Preoperative Prediction of Facial Nerve in Patients with Vestibular Schwannomas: The Role of Diffusion Tensor Imaging-A Systematic Review.

In vestibular schwannoma surgery, the preservation of facial and cochlear nerves is of paramount concern regarding to their effect on patients' quality of life. The rate of nerve function preservation has increased with advancements in surgical technique and neuroimaging and the introduction of intraoperative neuromonitoring. The preoperative depiction of anatomical issues between the nerves and tumor could help in surgical planning.

PM2.5 levels strongly associate with multiple sclerosis prevalence in the Province of Padua, Veneto Region, North-East Italy.

Background: Incidence and prevalence trends of multiple sclerosis (MS) in the Province of Padua, North-East Italy, suggest that environmental factors may be associated with increased MS risk.

Objective: To investigate the association of PM2.5 with MS prevalence in one of the most polluted geographical area of Italy.