Characteristics of Tremor Induced by Lesions of the Cerebellum.

It is a clinical experience that acute lesions of the cerebellum induce pathological tremor, which tends to improve. However, quantitative characteristics, imaging correlates, and recovery of cerebellar tremor have not been systematically investigated. We studied the prevalence, quantitative parameters measured with biaxial accelerometry, and recovery of pathological tremor in 68 patients with lesions affecting the cerebellum.

[Pulvinar].

The pulvinar is the largest nucleus of the thalamus. Its lateral and inferior areas have rich connections with the visual- and dorsolateral parietal cortices. Several cells in the medial and upper area connect the anterior cingulum and the premotor and prefrontal association areas.

[Neurophobia].

Neurophobia is the fear of neurological diseases. Its main symptom is that medical students and young doctors are not able to utilize their basic neurological knowledge at the bedside. According to statistics, every second student suffers from neurophobia.

[Vascular or "lower body Parkinsonism": rise and fall of a diagnosis].

Unlabelled: The "arteriosclerotic parkinsonism", which is called vascular parkinsonism (VP), was first described by Critchley'. The broad based slow gait, reduced stride lenght, start hesitation, freezing and paratonia was mentioned as "lower body parkinsonism" (LBP) which can be associated by slow speech, dysexecutive syndrome, and hand tremor of predominantly postural character. In VP the DAT-scan proved normal dopamine content of the striatum in contrast with Parkinson's disease (PD).

120 years of hippocampal Schaffer collaterals.

Károly Schaffer (1864-1939) was a Hungarian neurologist who distinguished himself through original discoveries in human neuropathology. At the beginning of his scientific carrier, he described the cellular and fiber structure of the hippocampus, earning him a high reputation in neuroscience. Schaffer (1892) described the so-called "collateral fiber system" that connects the CA3 and CA1 regions of the hippocampus, known today as Schaffer collaterals.

[Ulcerative carpal tunnel syndrome].

The carpal tunnel syndrome is the most frequent compression-induced neuropathy. A severe but rare clinical manifestation of this disorder associates with ulceration, acral osteolysis and mutilation of the terminal phalanges of the second and third fingers. Recognition of this disorder is difficult, because various dermatological and internal diseases might lead to acral ulcerative lesions, and these patients are seldom referred to neurological and/or electrodiagnostic examination.

[EEG investigations in cognitive impairments].

The EEG is an indicator of all physiological and neuropsychological activity. The alpha rhythm was considered as a key phenomenon in research of human mentation from the discovery of EEG. Two methods are known for the estimation of cognitive deficit by the use of quantitative EEG (QEEG).

[Neurology! Adieau? (Part 2)].

The education of neurologists is debilitated worldwide. University professors are engaged in teaching, research and patient-care. This triple challenge is very demanding, and results in permanent insecurity of University employees.

[Neurology! Adieau? (Part 1)].

The neurological practice suffered considerable changes during the last twenty years. The recent therapeutic methods and the acceptance of the ideology of evidence based medicine, which is based on confidence in statistics, changed the reasoning of the neurologists. Therapy protocols intrude into the field of individual medicine, and doctors accept treatment schemes to alleviate responsibility of their decisions.

How does the brain create rhythms?

Connection was found between rhythmic cortical activity and motor control. The 10 Hz micro-rhythm and the 20-30 Hz bursts represent two functional states of the somatomotor system. A correspondence of the central micro-rhythm of the motor cortex and the physiological hand tremor (8-12 Hz) is presumed.

Quantitative analysis of motor performance in epilepsy patients treated with valproate.

Purpose: The aim of our study was to detect objective signs of deterioration of motor performance in epilepsy patients treated with chronic valproate therapy.

Methods: We examined 14 controls and 15 epilepsy patients receiving chronic valproate monotherapy, who had no subjective complaints related to motor function. Regularity and maximum frequency of repetitive hand and finger movements, and simple reaction time were measured.

Levetiracetam reduces myoclonus in corticobasal degeneration: report of two cases.

Levetiracetam (LEV) has been shown to suppress myoclonus of various origins. Corticobasal degeneration (CBD), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with Parkinsonian syndrome, is frequently accompanied by myoclonus. We investigated the effect of LEV on myoclonus in two CBD patients.

Hypocapnia induced by involuntary hyperventilation during mental arithmetic reduces cerebral blood flow velocity.

Functional neuroimaging studies have shown that cognitive processes increase regional cerebral blood flow in relation with enhanced neuronal activity. However, cognition induces elevation of blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate, each of which also affects cerebral circulation. For proper interpretation of functional neuroimaging data, it is necessary to dissociate the effects of systemic and local metabolic reactions on regional cerebral circulation.

Post-movement beta synchronisation after complex prosaccade task.

Objective: Post-movement beta synchronisation (PMBS) has been described as an induced, localised increase of beta activity over the contralateral sensorimotor cortex after termination of voluntary limb movement. The aim of our study was to investigate whether ocular saccades also evoke movement related EEG changes.

Methods: Complex saccades were recorded in six healthy volunteers using electro-oculography.

[Intracerebral steal after acetazolamide administration].

Occlusion or high grade stenosis of the internal carotid artery may be asymptomatic depending on the collateral patterns in the circle of Willis and the reserve capacity of the microvascular (arteriolar) system. The distensibility of the cerebral arterioles may be described quantitatively by the vasomotor reactivity. We present three patients with severe stenosis of an internal carotid artery associated with more severe stenosis or occlusion of the contralateral internal carotid artery.

[Neurology of cognition and language in the publications of Kálmán Sántha and today].

Based on histopathological investigation of the brain of exceptionally talented persons Sántha found increased volume of parietal association areas with abundance of cells. He supposed that the angular gyrus may be a "memory field". In his publication Genius and inheritance he expressed that: "Talent is a child of the present, but the genius is born for eternity.

One-and-a-half syndrome--two cases.

One-and-a-half syndrome is characterized by combination of the clinical features of unilateral horizontal gaze palsy and internuclear ophthalmoplegia. The common symptoms are double vision and oscillopsia. The lesion is located in the paramedian pontine reticular formation, involving the centre of horizontal gaze and medial longitudinal fasciculus.

Simultaneous central and peripheral nervous system involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a frequent autoimmune disease, affecting several organs, including the brain, spinal cord and nerves. Cerebral vasculitis, transverse myelitis and polyneuropathy are the most common neurological manifestations. We report a case of a 46 years old woman who suffered incomplete transverse myelitis at the age of 44.

Movement-related beta responses in essential tremor and Parkinson's disease.

Objective: To investigate the pathomechanism of essential (ET) and parkinsonian tremor (PT) by studying the correlation between tremor severity and movement-related beta rhythm changes of the human electroencephalogram.

Patients And Methods: We recorded the electroencephalogram of 10 patients with essential tremor, 10 with Parkinsonian tremor and 10 controls. In a preliminary session we determined the side with lower and higher tremor intensity (T+, T++ respectively), using accelerometry.

EEG correlates of subcortical optokinetic nystagmus.

Objective: Our aim was to reveal the changes of concomitant scalp EEG activity during subcortical (stare-) optokinetic nystagmus (OKN).

Methods: Stare-OKN of 10 subjects was evoked and recorded simultaneously with the EEG. Frequency distribution of OKN-beats was determined in each subject.

[Aids-related toxoplasma-encephalitis presenting with acute psychotic episode].

The most frequent neurological manifestations of the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome-(AIDS) are Cerebral Toxoplasmosis, Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma (PCNSL), Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML) and AIDS-encephalitis (AIDS-dementia complex, multinucleated giant cell encephalitis, HIV-encephalopathy). Neurological complications usually occur in the advanced stages of the disease, and they are uncommon in the beginning as presenting illness, but may result in life-threatening condition or in death. Rarely the disease presents as a neuropsychiatric illness in an undiagnosed AIDS patient, delaying a proper diagnosis.

Delayed beta synchronization after movement of the more affected hand in essential tremor.

To investigate the pathomechanism of parkinsonian tremor (PT) and essential tremor (ET) by studying the correlation between tremor asymmetry and post-movement beta synchronization (PMBS) of the human EEG. We recorded the EEG of 10 patients with ET, 10 patients with Parkinson's disease and 10 controls. Subjects pressed an on-off switch in a self-paced manner with the thumb of their less (T+) and more (T++) tremulous hand.