Severe respiratory disease caused by human respiratory syncytial virus impairs language learning during early infancy.

Human respiratory syncytial virus infection is a leading cause of pediatric morbidity and mortality. A previous murine study showed that during severe acute respiratory infections the virus invades the central nervous system, and that infected animals evolve with long-lasting learning difficulties associated with long-term potentiation impairment in their hippocampus. We hypothesized here that human infants who presented a severe episode of respiratory syncytial virus infection before 6 months of age would develop long-term learning difficulties.

Increased prevalence of Mycoplasma pneumoniae serological positivity in Chilean young children.

Background: Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a frequent cause of respiratory infections in school children and adolescents. Epidemiological suspicion is important, since there are no specific symptoms or signs to help in diagnosing infection caused by this agent.

Objective: To determine the variation in prevalence over the last 10 years of M.

A beat-by-beat, on-line, cardiovascular index, CARDEAN, to assess circulatory responses to surgery: a randomized clinical trial during spine surgery.

Automated assessment of circulatory response to surgical stimuli is unsolved. Would detection of cardiac baroreflex inhibition assess adequacy of intra-operative anti-nociception upon incision, as performed on-line on a beat-by-beat basis by a cardiovascular index, CARDEAN™? 18 ASA I-II patients undergoing spinal disc repair were studied, in a prospective randomized single-blinded trial (observational study). During infusion of propofol to maintain bispectral index between 40 and 60, patients were allocated to receive an effect site target-controlled infusion of remifentanil at Ce = 2 or 4 ng ml(-1).

Do patients still require admission to an intensive care unit after elective craniotomy for brain surgery?

Background: After elective craniotomy for brain surgery, patients are usually admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). We sought to identify predictors of postoperative complications to define perioperative conditions that would safely allow ICU bypass.

Methods: This observational cohort study enrolled 358 patients admitted to neuro-ICU after elective intracranial procedures.

[Functional surgery for movement disorders: implications for anaesthesia].

Functional surgery for movement disorders is a recent stereotactic neurosurgical operation, restricted yet to patients with advanced Parkinson's disease or with generalized primary dystonia. One or two electrodes are implanted in the basal ganglia, namely in the globus pallidus pars interna or in the subthalamic nucleus, to realize a deep brain stimulation at high frequency. While this approach needs additional data to demonstrate clinical benefits, first results observed after short and long-term follow up are encouraging.