Improvement of gait by chronic, high doses of methylphenidate in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease.

Background: Therapeutic management of gait disorders in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) can sometimes be disappointing, since dopaminergic drug treatments and subthalamic nucleus (STN) stimulation are more effective for limb-related parkinsonian signs than for gait disorders. Gait disorders could also be partly related to norepinephrine system impairment, and the pharmacological modulation of both dopamine and norepinephrine pathways could potentially improve the symptomatology.

Aim: To assess the clinical value of chronic, high doses of methylphenidate (MPD) in patients with PD having gait disorders, despite their use of optimal dopaminergic doses and STN stimulation parameters.

Insular infarcts and electrocardiographic changes at admission: results of the PRognostic of Insular CErebral infarctS Study (PRINCESS).

Background And Purpose: Previous studies showed that insular strokes are associated with electrocardiographic (ECG) changes. However, they did not take into account the 1(st) ECG recorded at admission, but continuous ECG recorded up to 72 hours after onset. Whether these changes are the consequence of the infarct, or are associated with a cardiac source of cerebral ischemia, remains unsettled.

The specific thromboxane receptor antagonist S18886: pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies.

Objectives And Patients: We conducted a multicenter double-blind pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) study of the new oral thromboxane receptor antagonist S18886 in 30 patients with peripheral artery disease, who were randomized to receive five different oral dosages of S18886 (1, 2.5, 5, 10 or 30 mg) for 12 weeks (83 days). Primary objective was to determine the effect of S18886 on platelet aggregation ex vivo.

Heart rate variability and Parkinson's disease severity.

Heart rate variability (HRV) decrease in Parkinson's disease (PD) could only be a consequence of reduce motor activity besides of being a marker of cardiovascular dysautonomia. Under continuously recorded and standardised motor activity, we studied thirty patients compared to controls in 3 PD stages: group I: less than 2 year-evolution, slight impaired without L-dopa; group II: mildly impaired with L-dopa; group III: advanced PD with motor complications. No difference was observed between group I and controls.