Serum nerve growth factor levels in autistic children in Turkish population: a preliminary study.

Background & Objectives: It has been hypothesized that abnormal levels of serum nerve growth factor (NGF) may represent a serological marker for autistic children who may develop cognitive impairment, regression and finally epilepsy. The objective of this preliminary study was to measure serum NGF concentrations of autistic children and compare these levels with those of healthy children.

Methods: Consecutive children who were referred to the Paediatric Neurology and Child Psychiatry Policlinics of Dr.

Two cases with megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts and MLC1 mutations in the Turkish population.

Megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts is a rare leukodystrophy that is characterized by macrocephaly and a slowly progressive clinical course. It is one of the most commonly reported leukoencephalopathies in Turkey. Mutations in the MLC1 gene are the main cause of the disease.

Comparison of the effectiveness of topiramate and sodium valproate in pediatric migraine.

Frequent migraine headaches can have a significant impact on disability, prompting the need for early recognition and treatment. The objective of this study is to compare the efficacy of topiramate and sodium valproate for the prevention of pediatric migraine, retrospectively. Mean monthly migraine frequency, intensity, and duration in the 28 patients treated with topiramate decreased from 15.

Effect of nutritional support in children with spastic quadriplegia.

Malnutrition is a common problem in patients with cerebral palsy. We evaluated the effect of nutritional support on clinical findings in children with spastic quadriplegia. Feeding history, numbers of lower respiratory tract infections, and gastrointestinal and neurologic findings were evaluated via questionnaire.

Topiramate as a long-term therapy in children with refractory epilepsy.

Objective: To evaluate the long-term efficacy, safety, and retention rate of topiramate (TPM) in childhood refractory epilepsies.

Methods: This study was designed as a single-center, retrospective study. Children with refractory epilepsy who has been followed in Behcet Uz Children`s Hospital, Izmir, Turkey, between 2003 and 2007 were included in the study.

Role of apolipoprotein E in febrile convulsion.

Apolipoprotein E is consistently associated with the progression of some common human neurodegenerative diseases, e.g., epilepsy.

Multiple cavernous malformations with supravermian arachnoid cyst.

Cerebral cavernous malformation are congenital vascular abnormalities that have been reported in 0.4% of the population; they represent 5-13% of all cerebrovascular malformations. Onset of cerebral cavernous malformations may be associated with seizures, intracranial hemorrhages, focal neurological deficit or migraine-type headaches.

Novel mutation of aspartoacylase gene in a Turkish patient with Canavan disease.

Canavan disease is a neurodegenerative disease with autosomal recessive inheritance. Although this disease is prevalant among Ashkenazi Jewish population, several cases have been reported from all over the world. Canavan disease is caused by a genetic mutation in aspartoacylase gene.

A case of Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome progressing to resistant epilepsy.

Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome is defined by a collection of core characteristics that include mental retardation, epilepsy, growth delay, and craniofacial dysgenesis. The disorder is caused by subtelomeric deletions in the short arm of chromosome 4. The syndrome, as described in the literature, may have a progression to resistant seizures and status epilepticus, which may then exhibit specific electroencephalographic findings.

Efficacy of continuous midazolam infusion and mortality in childhood refractory generalized convulsive status epilepticus.

Purpose: Continuous midazolam infusion is commonly used for the management of status epilepticus (SE). The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of midazolam and mortality in childhood refractory generalized convulsive SE.

Methods: We included 27 children with refractory generalized convulsive SE.

Deletion analysis and clinical correlations in patients with Xp21 linked muscular dystrophy.

We carried out molecular deletion analysis on 142 patients with Duchenne/Becker muscular dystrophy which covered 25 exons of the dystrophin gene. We also evaluated the results by comparing with the clinical findings and examples in the literature. A deletion ratio of 63.

Late-onset distal polyneuropathy due to acute organophosphate intoxication case report.

Intoxications due to organophosphate insecticides are common in our country, since agriculture has an important place. Besides the well known acute cholinergic toxicity, these compounds may cause late-onset distal polyneuropathy occurring two to three weeks after the acute exposure. An eight-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl admitted to the hospital with gait disturbances.

Sydenham's chorea: clinical findings and comparison of the efficacies of sodium valproate and carbamazepine regimens.

Background: Sydenham's chorea is still the most frequently seen form of acquired chorea in childhood in developing world despite the use of antibiotics. It is a debilitating illness lasting for weeks or months and requires drug therapy.

Objective: To evaluate and compare the efficacies of sodium valproate and carbamazepine in the treatment of the choreiform movements in Sydenham's chorea.