A 17-Year-Old Boy With High-Functioning Autism, Gastrointestinal Illness, and Seizures.

A healthy 17-year-old boy with a high-functioning pervasive developmental disorder presented to the emergency department after having a 4-minute episode of seizure-like activity in the setting of presumed viral gastroenteritis. Within an hour of emergency department arrival, he developed a forehead-sparing facial droop, right-sided ptosis, and expressive aphasia, prompting stroke team assessment and urgent neuroimaging. Laboratory results later revealed a serum sodium of 119 mmol/L.

ED-based care coordination reduces costs for frequent ED users.

Objectives: We evaluated a pilot quality improvement intervention implemented in an urban academic medical center emergency department (ED) to improve care coordination and reduce ED visits and hospitalizations among frequent ED users.

Study Design: Randomized controlled trial.

Methods: We identified the most frequent ED users in both the 30 days prior to the intervention and the 12 months prior to the intervention.

Interventional pain management: when/what therapies are best for low back pain.

Purpose Of Review: The aim of this article is to inform an interested audience on novel minimally invasive and percutaneous interventional options for reduction of lower back pain.

Recent Findings: Numerous percutaneous and minimally invasive techniques for treatment of lower back pain were introduced recently. To accumulate sufficient clinical evidence in order to either dismiss or accept the new treatment modalities requires years of delay.

Neurite bridging across micropatterned grooves.

After injury, regenerating axons must navigate complex, three-dimensional (3D) microenvironments. Topographic guidance of neurite outgrowth has been demonstrated in vitro with culture substrates that contain micropatterned features on the nanometer-micron scale. In this study we report the ability of microfabricated biomaterials to support neurite extension across micropatterned grooves with feature sizes on the order of tens of microns, sizes relevant to the design of biomaterials and tissue engineering scaffolds.