Focal brain ischemia in mice does not cause electrophysiological signs of critical illness neuropathy.

Objective: Critical illness polyneuropathy (CIP) is a common complication of severe systemic illness treated in intensive care medicine. Ischemic stroke leads to an acute critical injury of the brain with hemiparesis, immunosuppression and subsequent infections, all of which require extended medical treatment. Stroke-induced sarcopenia further contributes to poor rehabilitation and is characterized by muscle wasting and denervation in the paralytic, but also the unaffected limbs.

Cellular infiltrates in skin and sural nerve of patients with polyneuropathies.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic usefulness of skin punch biopsies with emphasis on visualization and quantification of T-cells and macrophages in patients with polyneuropathies.

Methods: We quantified inflammatory cells in skin samples (lower leg, upper thigh) in 187 patients and compared data with counts in their sural nerve biopsies and with skin biopsies from 32 healthy volunteers.

Results: Vessel-bound T-cells and macrophages were increased in proximal and distal skin samples of neuropathy patients compared with controls (P < 0.

Intrathecal, polyspecific antiviral immune response in oligoclonal band negative multiple sclerosis.

Background: Oligoclonal bands (OCB) are detected in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in more than 95% of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the Western hemisphere. Here we evaluated the intrathecal, polyspecific antiviral immune response as a potential diagnostic CSF marker for OCB-negative MS patients.

Methodology/principal Findings: We tested 46 OCB-negative German patients with paraclinically well defined, definite MS.