Therapeutic Exercise is Effective in Reducing the Intensity of Nonspecific Low Back Pain in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis.

Objective: To compare the different physiotherapy treatments and determine the most effective treatment to reduce the nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP) intensity in children and adolescents.

Data Sources: Eight databases (Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, PEDro, Web of Science, LILACS, IBECS, PsycINFO, and SCOPUS), and 2 health-specialized journals (BMJ and Spine) were searched from inception to May 2023, with no language restriction.

Study Selection: Individuals aged 6-18 years with NSLBP were selected, and physical therapy treatments were considered.

Assessment of the Effects of Physiotherapy on Back Care and Prevention of Non-Specific Low Back Pain in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Non-specific low back pain (NSLBP) in children and adolescents has increased in recent years, and the evidence of the physiotherapy interventions in back care needs to be updated. Our main goal was to quantify the effects of preventive physiotherapy interventions on improving behavior and knowledge related to back care and prevention of NSLBP in children and adolescents. Based on two previous meta-analyses, Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, PEDro, Web of Science, LILACS, IBECS, PsycINFO, and IME databases and several journals were searched.

Obesity and overweight as risk factors for low back pain in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis.

Background: Childhood obesity and overweight are associated with musculoskeletal pain, but the association between low back pain (LBP) and overweight/obesity in this population needs clarification. The objective of this meta-analysis is to ascertain the relationship between LBP and obesity/overweight in children and adolescents.

Methods: Various databases and specialized journals were queried from inception to October 2022.

Effectiveness of physiotherapy interventions for back care and the prevention of non-specific low back pain in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Non-specific low back pain in children and adolescents has increased in recent years. The purpose of this study was to upgrade the evidence of the most effective preventive physiotherapy interventions to improve back care in children and adolescents.

Methods: The study settings were children or adolescents aged 18 years or younger.

Identifying comorbidities and lifestyle factors contributing to the cognitive profile of early Parkinson's disease.

Background: Identifying modifiable risk factors for cognitive impairment in the early stages of Parkinson's disease (PD) and estimating their impact on cognitive status may help prevent dementia (PDD) and the design of cognitive trials.

Methods: Using a standard approach for the assessment of global cognition in PD and controlling for the effects of age, education and disease duration, we explored the associations between cognitive status, comorbidities, metabolic variables and lifestyle variables in 533 PD participants from the COPPADIS study.

Results: Among the overall sample, 21% of participants were classified as PD-MCI (n = 114) and 4% as PDD (n = 26).

Falls Predict Acute Hospitalization in Parkinson's Disease.

Background: There is a need for identifying risk factors for hospitalization in Parkinson's disease (PD) and also interventions to reduce acute hospital admission.

Objective: To analyze the frequency, causes, and predictors of acute hospitalization (AH) in PD patients from a Spanish cohort.

Methods: PD patients recruited from 35 centers of Spain from the COPPADIS-2015 (COhort of Patients with PArkinson's DIsease in Spain, 2015) cohort from January 2016 to November 2017, were included in the study.

Mutational spectrum of GNAL, THAP1 and TOR1A genes in isolated dystonia: study in a population from Spain and systematic literature review.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the prevalence of TOR1A, GNAL and THAP1 variants as the cause of dystonia in a cohort of Spanish patients with isolated dystonia and in the literature.

Methods: A population of 2028 subjects (including 1053 patients with different subtypes of isolated dystonia and 975 healthy controls) from southern and central Spain was included. The genes TOR1A, THAP1 and GNAL were screened using a combination of high-resolution melting analysis and direct DNA resequencing.

Can suitable candidates for levodopa/carbidopa intestinal gel therapy be identified using current evidence?

Advanced Parkinson's disease (APD) is characterized by increased functional disability, caused by motor complications, the presence of axial symptoms, and emergent disease- and drug-related non-motor symptoms. One of the advanced therapies available is intrajejunal infusion of levodopa/carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG); however, patient selection for this treatment is sometimes difficult, particularly because of overlapping indications with other alternatives. In recent years, strong evidence has supported the use of LCIG in treating motor fluctuations associated with APD, and several clinical studies provide emerging evidence for additional benefits of LCIG treatment in certain patients.

Lack of validation of variants associated with cervical dystonia risk: a GWAS replication study.

Background: A recent genome-wide association study (GWAS) has identified a putative association, not statistically confirmed, of cervical dystonia within several regions in a British population. Hence, the authors proposed dysfunction of the ion channel NALCN (for sodium leak channel, nonselective) as a plausible cause of cervical dystonia. The objective of our study was to investigate the association of five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) previously reported with high signals as putative genetic risk factors for cervical dystonia in a British GWAS, including two located in the NALCN gene region.

BDNF Val66Met polymorphism in primary adult-onset dystonia: a case-control study and meta-analysis.

Background: A polymorphism in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) (Val66Met) has been reported as a risk factor in primary dystonia. However, overall the results have been inconclusive. Our aim was to clarify the association of Val66Met with primary dystonia, and with the most prevalent clinical subtypes, cervical dystonia and blepharospasm.

Clinical and molecular study of the extracellular matrix protein 1 gene in a spanish family with lipoid proteinosis.

Background: Lipoid proteinosis (LP) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by a hoarse voice, variable scarring, and infiltration of the skin and mucosa. This disease is associated with mutations of the gene encoding extracellular matrix protein 1 (ECM1).

Case Report: This was a clinical and molecular study of a new case of LP with a severe phenotype.

[Music and brain (II): evidence of musical training in the brain].

Music is a very powerful multimodal stimulus that transmits visual, auditory and motor information to our brain, which in turn has a specific network for processing it, consisting in the frontotemporoparietal regions. This activation can be very beneficial in the treatment of several syndromes and diseases, either by rehabilitating or by stimulating altered neuronal connections. We also review the peculiarities of the musician's brain and we look at how the brain adapts according to the needs that must be met in order to improve musical performance.

[Music and brain: neuroscientific foundations and musical disorders].

Music is present in every culture and, from the earliest ages, we all have the basic capacities needed to process it, although this processing takes place in different modules that involve different regions of the brain. Do these regions form paths that are specific to musical processing? As we shall see, the production and perception of music engage a large part of our cognitive capabilities, involving areas of the auditory cortex and the motor cortex. On the other hand, music produces emotional responses within us that involve other cortical and subcortical areas.

Study of cerebral cavernous malformation in Spain and Portugal: high prevalence of a 14 bp deletion in exon 5 of MGC4607 (CCM2 gene).

Objective: We aimed to study clinical, radiological and molecular genetic features of patients with cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) from the Iberian Peninsula.

Methods: We screened Krit1(CCM1), MGC4607(CCM2), and PDCD10(CCM3) by systematic SSCP and direct sequencing of coding exons in 48 nuclear families and 30 sporadic cases of CCM from Spain and Portugal.

Results: Screening of CCM patients detected nine different mutations in 19 families.

Hypothyroidism and Parkinson's disease and the issue of diagnostic confusion.

Development of hypothyroidism may easily be overlooked when occurring together with Parkinson's disease (PD), because many of the symptoms of the two disorders are similar. We report on a case of a woman suffering from both PD and hypothyroidism and review the literature on the subject.

Variable expression of cerebral cavernous malformations in carriers of a premature termination codon in exon 17 of the Krit1 gene.

Background: Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCM) present as either sporadic or autosomal dominant conditions with incomplete penetrance of symptoms. Differences in genetic and environmental factors might be minimized among first-degree relatives. We therefore studied clinical expression in a family with several affected members.

Juvenile parkinsonism as a manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus: case report and review of the literature.

Involvement of the central nervous system in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has been well described. It usually includes psychiatric disturbance, seizures, and cranial nerve disorders. Movement disorders are less common, chorea being the one most frequently described.