Instrumented assessment of lower and upper motor neuron signs in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis using robotic manipulation: an explorative study.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by upper motor neuron (UMN) and lower motor neuron (LMN) involvement. Their varying degree of involvement results in a clinical heterogenous picture, making clinical assessments of UMN signs in patients with ALS often challenging. We therefore explored whether instrumented assessment using robotic manipulation could potentially be a valuable tool to study signs of UMN involvement.

[Acute agranulocytosis induced by pyramidon or phenothiazines. Apropos of 31 cases].

The authors present 31 cases of acute agranulocytosis due to drugs. 27 resulted from amidopyrine poisoning and 4 were due to phenothiazines. The clinical picture in most cases, was that of severe septicemia with lesions of the mucosae.