Cystoscopic diagnosis of polypoid cystitis in two pet rabbits.

CASE DESCRIPTION AS-year-old male Dwarf rabbit and 4-year-old female Mini-Rex rabbit were evaluated because of anorexia and urine scalding of the perineum. CLINICAL FINDINGS Abdominal radiography revealed a diffuse increase in the opacity of the urinary bladder attributable to urinary sludge. In 1 rabbit, abdominal ultrasonography revealed several mass-like lesions protruding from the mucosal surface into the lumen of the urinary bladder.

Computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation on freezing of gait in Parkinson's disease: A pilot study.

Background: In Parkinson's Disease (PD), effects of a cognitive training have been systematically evaluated only for cognitive and behavioral outcome measures, with mild to moderate effects. Despite the demonstrated interplay between cognition and gait, no studies have investigated the effect of cognitive rehabilitation protocols on gait in PD.

Methods: Patients affected by PD with freezing of gait were treated twice a week for six weeks with one hour sessions of computer-assisted training of attention ability and information processing tasks.

HepPar1-Positive Circulating Microparticles Are Increased in Subjects with Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Predict Early Recurrence after Liver Resection.

Circulating microparticles (MPs) are novel potential biomarkers in cancer patients. Their role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is under intensive investigation. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that MPs expressing the antigen HepPar1 are increased in the blood of subjects with HCC and may serve as markers of early recurrence after liver resection (LR).

Screening, diagnosis and management of human cysticercosis and Taenia solium taeniasis: technical recommendations by the COHEMI project study group.

Neurocysticercosis, the central nervous system's localised form of cysticercosis, is considered to be the leading cause of epilepsy in the developing world. In Europe, the disease is mainly imported and affects both immigrants and travellers. However, autochthonous cases of cysticercosis in low-endemic countries could also originate from Taenia solium carriers (migrants or travellers) who acquired taeniasis overseas.

Topiramate for essential tremor.

Background: Essential tremor (ET) is one of the most common movement disorders. The management is primarily based on pharmacological agents and in clinical practice propranolol and primidone are considered the first-line therapy. However, these treatments can be ineffective in 25% to 55% of people and are frequently associated with serious adverse events (AEs).

Iron and Parkinson's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

A possible association between iron serum levels and Parkinson's disease (PD) using a meta‑analytic approach was evaluated. A systematic MEDLINE search was conducted to identify published observational, case‑control studies dealing with the association between iron blood levels and PD. In both groups, iron blood levels were extracted as means and standard deviations to calculate the standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

A screening questionnaire for convulsive seizures: A three-stage field-validation in rural Bolivia.

Introduction: Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases in Latin American Countries (LAC) and epilepsy associated with convulsive seizures is the most frequent type. Therefore, the detection of convulsive seizures is a priority, but a validated Spanish-language screening tool to detect convulsive seizures is not available. We performed a field validation to evaluate the accuracy of a Spanish-language questionnaire to detect convulsive seizures in rural Bolivia using a three-stage design.

Geo-helminthiasis among migrants in Sicily: a possible focus for re-emerging neurocysticercosis in Europe.

A dramatic increasing immigration flow was recorded in Europe during the last years. Only in Sicily 120,239 people arrived in 2014. Immigrants may carry neglected tropical diseases endemic in their origin countries.

Side effects induced by the acute levodopa challenge in Parkinson's Disease and atypical parkinsonisms.

Introduction: Acute levodopa challenge may be performed to predict levodopa chronic responsiveness. The aim of the study was to investigate frequency of side effects during the acute levodopa challenge in PD and atypical parkinsonisms.

Methods: We enrolled 34 de novo PD patients and 29 patients affected by atypical parkinsonisms (Multiple System Atrophy, MSA, n = 10; Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, PSP, n = 12 and Corticobasal Degeneration, CBD, n = 7) who underwent an acute levodopa challenge.

Osteoporosis-pseudoglioma syndrome: Report of two cases and a manifesting carrier.

Background: Osteoporosis-pseudoglioma syndrome is a very rare disease mainly characterized by severe eye abnormalities and osteoporosis but also causing a broader range of clinical features. The syndrome is associated with homozygous or compound heterozygous variations in the LRP5 gene. In this report, we describe two children with a severe early-onset form of familial exudative vitreoretinopathy associated with skeletal abnormalities.

The relevance of gender in Parkinson's disease: a review.

Since the official and systematic inclusion of sex and gender in biomedical research, gender differences have been acknowledged as important determinants of both the susceptibility to develop neurodegenerative diseases in general population and the clinical and therapeutic management of neurodegenerative patients. In this review, we gathered the available evidence on gender differences in Parkinson's disease (PD) regarding clinical phenotype (including motor and non-motor symptoms), biomarkers, genetics and therapeutic management (including pharmacological and surgical treatment). Finally, we will briefly discuss the role of estrogens in determining such differences.

Gender effect on non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease: are men more at risk?

Introduction: Several gender differences have been reported in Parkinson's Disease (PD). We evaluated the burden of non-motor symptoms (NMS) in PD and the possible gender differences in their occurrence.

Methods: The FRAGAMP study is a large multicenter case-control study.

Design and Validation of a New MLPA-Based Assay for the Detection of RS1 Gene Deletions and Application in a Large Family with X-Linked Juvenile Retinoschisis.

Aims: X-linked juvenile retinoschisis (XLRS) is a severe ocular disorder that can evolve to blindness. More than 200 different disease-causing mutations have been reported in the RS1 gene and approximately 10% of these are deletions. Since transmission is X-linked, males are always affected and females are usually carriers.

Accelerated craniofacial bone regeneration through dense collagen gel scaffolds seeded with dental pulp stem cells.

Therapies using mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) seeded scaffolds may be applicable to various fields of regenerative medicine, including craniomaxillofacial surgery. Plastic compression of collagen scaffolds seeded with MSC has been shown to enhance the osteogenic differentiation of MSC as it increases the collagen fibrillary density. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the osteogenic effects of dense collagen gel scaffolds seeded with mesenchymal dental pulp stem cells (DPSC) on bone regeneration in a rat critical-size calvarial defect model.

Switching L-dopa Therapy from Pulsatile to Pulse Administration Reduces Motor Complications in Parkinson's Disease.

Objective: To evaluate the severity of wearing-off and dyskinesia in patients with complicated Parkinson disease (PD) after switching L-dopa oral therapy from a "pulsatile" administration, consisting in intermittent multiple daily small doses of the drug, to a "pulse" administration, consisting in standard oral doses given at specific interdose intervals.

Methods: Thirty-four PD patients with motor complications were monitored twice with standardized waking day motor status evaluations using the Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale-Motor Examination (UPDRS-ME) and the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS) after switching L-dopa administration modality from "pulsatile" to "pulse." To quantify predictable motor fluctuations, a Wearing Off Index was computed based on changes in treatment response magnitude.

Peristrut microhemorrhages: a possible cause of in-stent neoatherosclerosis?

Background: In-stent neoatherosclerosis is characterized by the delayed appearance of markers of atheroma in the subintima, but the pathophysiology underlying this new disease entity remains unclear.

Methods And Results: We collected 20 human coronary artery stents by removal from explanted hearts. The mean duration of stent implantation was 34 months.

Genetic variants associated with gastrointestinal symptoms in Fabry disease.

Gastrointestinal symptoms (GIS) are often among the earliest presenting events in Fabry disease (FD), an X-linked lysosomal disorder caused by the deficiency of α-galactosidase A. Despite recent advances in clinical and molecular characterization of FD, the pathophysiology of the GIS is still poorly understood. To shed light either on differential clinical presentation or on intervariability of GIS in FD, we genotyped 1936 genetic markers across 231 genes that encode for drug-metabolizing enzymes and drug transport proteins in 49 FD patients, using the DMET Plus platform.

In vitro susceptibility of Burkholderia cepacia complex isolates: Comparison of disk diffusion, Etest®, agar dilution, and broth microdilution methods.

Broth microdilution, agar dilution, Etest® and disk diffusion techniques were compared to evaluate the susceptibility profile of 82 Bcc clinical isolates against six antimicrobials as recommended by CLSI. Broth microdilution was considered the "gold standard" method. The regression analysis was applied to determine the essential (EA) and categorical (CA) agreement rates.

Pregabalin for essential tremor.

Background: Essential tremor is one of the most common movement disorders. Treatment primarily consists of pharmacological agents. While primidone and propranolol are well-established treatments in clinical practice, they may be ineffective in 25% to 55% of patients and can produce serious adverse events in a large percentage of them.

Validity of medico-administrative data related to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in France: A population-based study.

The accuracy of French medico-administrative data concerning amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is to date unknown. We aimed to assess the validity of hospital discharge data (HDD) and health insurance data (HID) related to ALS. A retrospective population-based study was performed.

Magnetic Resonance Parkinsonism Index: diagnostic accuracy of a fully automated algorithm in comparison with the manual measurement in a large Italian multicentre study in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy.

Objectives: To investigate the reliability of a new in-house automatic algorithm for calculating the Magnetic Resonance Parkinsonism Index (MRPI), in a large multicentre study population of patients affected by progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) or Parkinson's disease (PD), and healthy controls (HC), and to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the automatic and manual MRPI values.

Methods: The study included 88 PSP patients, 234 PD patients and 117 controls. MRI was performed using both 3T and 1.