Development, reliability, and validity of the telerehabilitation satisfaction questionnaire in neurological diseases.

Background: Measuring satisfaction with telerehabilitation provides a way to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of both the technology used and the rehabilitation provided. On the other hand, valid and reliable tools are needed to evaluate satisfaction of patients receiving physiotherapy via telerehabilitation.

Aims: The purpose of the current study was to develop Telerehabilitation Satisfaction Questionnaire (TrSQ) and evaluate its validity and reliability.

The effects of standard and modified LSVT BIG therapy protocols on balance and gait in Parkinson's disease: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: Lee Silverman voice treatment (LSVT) BIG is an exercise program developed for patients with Parkinson's disease (PwPD), consisting of sets of exercises performed for 4 consecutive days a week for 4 weeks. However, the standard protocol suggests a treatment frequency difficult to follow for most patients who have difficulties reaching rehabilitation clinics. Our aim was to compare the standard LSVT BIG protocol with a modified LSVT (m-LSVT) BIG protocol (twice a week in the clinic for 4 weeks and twice a week at home for 4 weeks).

The effect of task-oriented circuit training-based telerehabilitation on upper extremity motor functions in patients with Parkinson's disease: A randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Upper extremity functions are impaired in patients with Parkinson's disease (PwPD), which leads to difficulties in activities of daily living (ADL), such as reaching or handwriting. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of task-oriented circuit training-based telerehabilitation (TOCT-TR) on the upper extremity motor function in PwPD.

Methods: In this randomized controlled trial (RCT) 30 PwPD (aged 45-70 years, Hoehn & Yahr stage I-III) were recruited and randomly allocated into two groups.

Botulinum toxin injections in jaw-opening dystonia. The lateral pterygoid - maxillary artery problem.

It has been suggested that the variations in the trajectory of the maxillary artery (MA) near the lateral pterygoid muscle (LPM) play a critical role in Botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injections in patients with jaw-opening/deviation dystonia (JOD). In the case of a lateral course to the LPM, an extraoral injection entails risks of MA injury, pain, and hematoma. Previous reports suggest geographical differences in variations of the MA-LPM relationship.

Dose conversion ratio, comparative efficacy, and adverse events after switching from onabotulinum toxin A to abobotulinum toxin A for neurological conditions.

Objectives: Onabotulinum toxin A (ONA, Botox®) and abobotulinum toxin A (ABO, Dysport®) are most frequently used in the treatment of movement disorders. The aim of this study was to identify the dose conversion ratio (ABO dose:ONA dose), comparative efficacy, and adverse events in patients who switched from ONA to ABO.

Methods: There were 64 patients with cervical dystonia (39), hemifacial spasm (16), oromandibular dystonia (5), blepharospasm (3), and extremity dystonia (1) who switched from ONA to ABO.

The effect of Subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation on verb and noun naming in Turkish-Speaking Parkinson's disease patients.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with an action language deficit. Subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN DBS) deteriorates verbal fluency, but may improve verb naming more than nouns in PD. We investigated effects of grammatical class (verb vs noun), action content (action vs non-action) of words and unilateral, bilateral or no stimulation on naming.

Assessment of hand functions in patients with idiopathic cervical dystonia.

Cervical dystonia (CD) is the most common form of focal dystonia characterized by involuntary contractions of the neck muscles, causing abnormal rotation of the head into specific directions. Studies report that idiopathic dystonia is a developmental disorder of the sensorimotor circuits, involving both the cortico-striatal and thalamo-cortical pathways. It is also suggested that enhanced cortical plasticity extends beyond the clinically affected region and may also be detected in the unaffected upper limbs of the patient with CD.

Multicenter study of levodopa carbidopa intestinal gel in Parkinson’s disease: the Turkish experience.

Background/aim: Our purpose was to determine the efficacy of levodopa carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) in a series of Turkish patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Materials And Methods: We had telephone calls with 54 patients from 11 neurology centers who were on LCIG treatment, and 44 patients or their caregivers were included in an eight-item survey between September 2015 and June 2016. The reliability and validity of the survey were evaluated with intraclass correlation coefficients for every question separately.

Predictive Factors for Favorable Outcome from Subthalamic Nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation in Parkinson’s Disease.

Aim: To investigate predictive factors for a favorable outcome from subthalamic nucleus-deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and whether low serum vitamin B12 (vB12) levels can predict an unfavorable outcome.

Material And Methods: Thirty-nine patients with PD who underwent bilateral STN-DBS were retrospectively analyzed. A difference of at least 30% between preoperative medication-off and postoperative medication-off stimulation-on Unified PD Rating Scale (UPDRS)-III scores was accepted to be a good outcome.

Hemifacial spasm in sleep - A polysomnographic study.

Background: Polysomnography (PSG) studies in patients with facial dyskinesias are few. With regard to hemifacial spasm (HFS), one study reported the continuity of spasms during sleep which was not confirmed elsewhere using a PSG. Therefore, we sought to investigate abnormal facial movements during sleep in patients with HFS.

Turkish Standardization of Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale and Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale.

Background: Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) and Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale (UDysRS) were developed as standard tools to rate Parkinson's disease (PD) and drug-induced dyskinesias of PD. As these scales have become widely used, there is a need for translation to non-English languages. Here we present the standardization for the Turkish translations.

Verb naming fluency in hypokinetic and hyperkinetic movement disorders.

Cortical motor regions are considered to play a role in action related language. These regions are affected differently in different types of movement disorders. Parkinson's disease, a hypokinetic movement disorder, has been shown to cause action language disruptions alongside movement deficits.

Appendectomy History is not Related to Parkinson's Disease.

Background: It has been suggested that appendectomy may modify the emergence of Parkinson's disease (PD) by affecting the retrograde transport of α-synuclein (α-syn) from the gastrointestinal system.

Objective: To explore the possible role of appendectomy on PD.

Methods: The retrospective data of the 1625 patients (839 PD, 633 non-α-syn parkinsonism and 153 controls) were compared.

A Picture Database for Verbs and Nouns with Different Action Content in Turkish.

In this study we present a picture database of 160 nouns and 160 verbs. All verbs and nouns are divided into two groups as action and non-action words. Age of acquisition, familiarity, imageability, name agreement and complexity norms are reported alongside frequency, word length and morpheme count for each word.

Botulinum toxin injections for the treatment of hemifacial spasm over 16 years.

The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy and side effects of botulinum toxin (BTX) in the treatment of hemifacial spasm (HFS). We also focused on the divergence between different injection techniques and commercial forms. We retrospectively evaluated 470 sessions of BTX injections administered to 68 patients with HFS.

Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Non-depressed Essential Tremor Cases and Controls: A Clinical and Audiometric Study.

Background: Patients with essential tremor (ET) have an increased prevalence of hearing loss, and depression is a confounding issue for both conditions. We assessed hearing loss in non-depressed ET patients and controls using a questionnaire and audiometric tests.

Methods: The study included 34 patients with ET and 45 volunteers were included.

Prevalence of restless legs syndrome in Ankara, Turkey: an analysis of diagnostic criteria and awareness.

The aim of this study was threefold: (1) to investigate the prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS), in Ankara, Turkey; (2) to determine the predictive values of diagnostic criteria; and (3) to determine the frequency of physician referrals and the frequency of getting the correct diagnosis. A total of 815 individuals, from randomly selected addresses, above the age of 15, were reached using the questionnaire composed of the four diagnostic criteria. Individuals who responded by answering 'yes' for at least one question were interviewed by neurologists for the diagnosis of RLS.

Social anxiety in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Previous research highlights the presence of social anxiety disorder related to disfiguring diseases, although DSM-IV precludes the diagnosis of social anxiety disorder related to a medical condition. The present study investigated the frequency and severity of social anxiety disorder in patients with Parkinson's disease (n=50) and comparison subjects (n=50). Social anxiety was diagnosed in 16% of patients with Parkinson's disease and 2% of the comparison subjects.