The Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Val66Met Polymorphism Can Protect Against Cognitive Impairment in Multiple Sclerosis.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a member of the neurotrophin family, involved in neuronal survival and synaptic plasticity. The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism is known to reduce BDNF expression and secretion; its role in multiple sclerosis (MS) is poorly investigated. In this multicenter, retrospective study, we assessed the role of BDNF Val66Met polymorphism on cognitive and motor disability in MS patients consecutively referred to the University of Florence and the Hospital of Barletta.

Correction: Cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis: An exploratory analysis of environmental and lifestyle risk factors.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis: An exploratory analysis of environmental and lifestyle risk factors.

Background: Many potentially modifiable risk factors for MS are investigated. It is not known, however, if these factors also apply to MS-related cognitive impairment (CI), a frequent consequence of MS.

Objective: The aim of our study was to assess risk factors for CI in MS patients, focusing on environmental exposures, lifestyle and comorbidities.

A 12-month prospective, observational study evaluating the impact of disease-modifying treatment on emotional burden in recently-diagnosed multiple sclerosis patients: The POSIDONIA study.

Introduction: Depression and anxiety are common among patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and are frequently present at the time of MS diagnosis.

Methods: POSIDONIA was a 12-month, observational, prospective study conducted in Italy to evaluate the impact of disease-modifying treatment (DMT) on emotional burden in patients with recently-diagnosed MS. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), specifically HADS anxiety (HADS-A) and depression (HADS-D) subscale scores, the Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) and the Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R) were used to measure patient-reported outcomes.

A comparison of the brief international cognitive assessment for multiple sclerosis and the brief repeatable battery in multiple sclerosis patients.

Background: Recently, a Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS) has been developed as an international and standardized brief cognitive test, which is easily performed in everyday clinical practice for neuropsychological assessment in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, we need to gather more information about this tool compared to other neuropsychological batteries. The aim of our study is to compare the performance of BICAMS and Brief Repeatable Battery (BRB) in MS subjects.

The Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS): normative values with gender, age and education corrections in the Italian population.

Background: BICAMS (Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis) has been recently developed as brief, practical and universal assessment tool for cognitive impairment in MS subjects. It includes the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), the California Verbal Learning Test-2 (CVLT2) and the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised (BVMT-R) . In this study we aimed at gathering regression based normative data for the BICAMS battery in the Italian population.

The progression of posterior cortical atrophy to corticobasal syndrome: lumping or splitting neurodegenerative diseases?

Background: Posterior cortical atrophy is a clinical syndrome that is characterized by the progressive loss of visuospatial integration and is associated with neurodegenerative conditions.

Case Report: We describe a 60-year-old female with simultanagnosia, oculomotor apraxia, and optic ataxia for which she received an initial clinical diagnosis of posterior cortical atrophy. Three years later, she developed Balint's syndrome, Gerstmann's syndrome, left alien hand syndrome, smooth asymmetric (left) rigidity, cortical sensory loss, and spontaneous myoclonic jerks of the left arm, which suggested a final diagnosis of corticobasal syndrome.