No substantial neurocognitive impact of COVID-19 across ages and disease severity: a multicenter biomarker study of SARS-CoV-2 positive and negative adult and pediatric patients with acute respiratory tract infections.

Background: Compared to intensive care unit patients with SARS-CoV-2 negative acute respiratory tract infections, patients with SARS-CoV-2 are supposed to develop more frequently and more severely neurologic sequelae. Delirium and subsequent neurocognitive deficits (NCD) have implications for patients' morbidity and mortality. However, the extent of brain injury during acute COVID-19 and subsequent NCD still remain largely unexplored.

Longitudinal Assessment of Blood-Based Inflammatory, Neuromuscular, and Neurovascular Biomarker Profiles in Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness: A Prospective Single-Center Cohort Study.

Background: The diagnosis of intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired weakness (ICUAW) and critical illness neuromyopathy (CINM) is frequently hampered in the clinical routine. We evaluated a novel panel of blood-based inflammatory, neuromuscular, and neurovascular biomarkers as an alternative diagnostic approach for ICUAW and CINM.

Methods: Patients admitted to the ICU with a Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score of ≥ 8 on 3 consecutive days within the first 5 days as well as healthy controls were enrolled.

[Intensive care unit-acquired weakness-Diagnostic value of neuromuscular ultrasound].

Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICUAW) is one of the most common neuromuscular complications in intensive care medicine. The clinical diagnosis and assessment of the severity using established diagnostic methods (e.g.

Neuromuscular Ultrasound in Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness: Current State and Future Directions.

Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICUAW) is one of the most common causes of muscle atrophy and functional disability in critically ill intensive care patients. Clinical examination, manual muscle strength testing and monitoring are frequently hampered by sedation, delirium and cognitive impairment. Many different attempts have been made to evaluate alternative compliance-independent methods, such as muscle biopsies, nerve conduction studies, electromyography and serum biomarkers.

Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness and Critical Illness Myopathy: A Narrative Review.

Mitochondria are key structures providing most of the energy needed to maintain homeostasis. They are the main source of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), participate in glucose, lipid and amino acid metabolism, store calcium and are integral components in various intracellular signaling cascades. However, due to their crucial role in cellular integrity, mitochondrial damage and dysregulation in the context of critical illness can severely impair organ function, leading to energetic crisis and organ failure.

The Effect of Early Application of Synthetic Peptides 19-2.5 and 19-4LF to Improve Survival and Neurological Outcome in a Mouse Model of Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation.

The synthetic antimicrobial peptides (sAMPs) Pep19-2.5 and Pep19-4LF have been shown in vitro and in vivo to reduce the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, leading to the suppression of inflammation and immunomodulation. We hypothesized that intervention with Pep19-2.

A Global Survey on Diagnostic, Therapeutic and Preventive Strategies in Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness.

Background and Objectives: Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) is one of the most frequent neuromuscular complications in critically ill patients. We conducted a global survey to evaluate the current practices of diagnostics, treatment and prevention in patients with ICU-AW. Materials and Methods: A pre-survey was created with international experts.

Sonographic Evaluation of Muscle Echogenicity for the Detection of Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness: A Pilot Single-Center Prospective Cohort Study.

Qualitative assessment by the Heckmatt scale (HS) and quantitative greyscale analysis of muscle echogenicity were compared for their value in detecting intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW). We performed muscle ultrasound (MUS) of eight skeletal muscles on day 3 and day 10 after ICU admission. We calculated the global mean greyscale score (MGS), the global mean z-score (MZS) and the global mean Heckmatt score (MHS).

[Intensive Care Unit-Acquired Weakness : A nationwide survey on diagnostics, monitoring and treatment strategies on German intensive care units].

Background: Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) is one of the most frequent causes of neuromuscular dysfunction in intensive care medicine. To date no evidence-based recommendations exist for the diagnostics, monitoring or further intensive care treatment.

Objective: To evaluate the current clinical practice of diagnostics, monitoring and treatment strategies of ICU-AW on intensive care units in Germany.

A novel ex vivo model for critical illness neuromyopathy using freshly resected human colon smooth muscle.

Patients suffering from critical illness are at risk to develop critical illness neuromyopathy (CINM). The underlying pathophysiology is complex and controversial. A central question is whether soluble serum factors are involved in the pathogenesis of CINM.

A case series on the value of tau and neurofilament protein levels to predict and detect delirium in cardiac surgery patients.

Background: Delirium following cardiac surgery is a relevant complication in the majority of elderly patients but its prediction is challenging. Cardiopulmonary bypass, essential for many interventions in cardiac surgery, is responsible for a severe inflammatory response leading to neuroinflammation and subsequent delirium. Neurofilament light protein (NfL) and tau protein (tau) are specific biomarkers to detect neuroaxonal injury as well as glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), a marker of astrocytic activation.

Acetylcholine Neurotransmitter Receptor Densities in the Striatum of Hemiparkinsonian Rats Following Botulinum Neurotoxin-A Injection.

Cholinergic neurotransmission has a pivotal function in the caudate-putamen, and is highly associated with the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease. Here, we investigated long-term changes in the densities of the muscarinic receptor subtypes M, M, M (mAchRs) and the nicotinic receptor subtype αβ (nAchRs) in the striatum of the 6-OHDA-induced hemiparkinsonian (hemi-PD) rat model using quantitative receptor autoradiography. Hemi-PD rats exhibited an ipsilateral decrease in striatal mAchR densities between 6 and 16%.