Nasojejunal Tube Placement for Levodopa-carbidopa Intestinal Gel Treatment by Neurologists in Patients with Advanced Parkinson's Disease: A Retrospective Observational Study.

Introduction Short-term levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) treatment using nasojejunal (NJ) tubes (NJ-LCIG test) is recommended for patients with advanced Parkinson's disease to ensure compatibility with this treatment system prior to permanent percutaneous endoscopic gastrojejunostomy. However, there have been no studies on NJ tube insertion by neurologists or on possible differences in treatment efficacy based on the NJ tube insertion method or tube tip position. We therefore investigated the effects of LCIG with NJ tube placement performed by a neurologist.

Quality of life assessment when considering the introduction of device-assisted therapies in advanced Parkinson's disease: A retrospective observational cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Device-aided therapy (DAT) is an established treatment for improving the quality of life (QOL) in individuals with advanced Parkinson's disease (APD). Criteria for starting DAT, including motor and non-motor symptoms, have been proposed. However, it remains unclear whether QOL differences among patients with APD influence DAT introduction.

Slow vital capacity as a useful indicator of the prognosis after percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Objectives: Forced vital capacity (FVC) is recommended as a respiratory function test in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, in ALS associated with orofacial palsy, FVC may be an unreliable test. Slow vital capacity (SVC) is an easier and more reliable test even in cases with bulbar symptoms.

Assessing the relationship between non-motor symptoms and health-related quality of life in Parkinson's disease: a retrospective observational cohort study.

Objectives: Non-motor symptoms (NMSs) negatively impact the health-related quality of life (HrQOL) of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The Movement Disorder Society-Sponsored Revision of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) is a comprehensive scale for evaluating PD. It remains unclear whether the NMSs evaluated with MDS-UPDRS are predictive of HrQOL.

Helicopter Transport for Patients with Cerebral Infarction in Rural Japan.

Objectives: Physician-staffed helicopter transport is faster than ground transport and allows for prompt medical care of patients in rural areas. In this study, we evaluated the relationship between helicopter transport and the prognosis of patients with acute cerebral infarction in rural Japan.

Methods: This retrospective, observational study included 546 patients with acute cerebral infarction attending Aomori Prefectural Central Hospital, which serves a rural region of Japan.

Subacute Sensory Ataxic Neuronopathy With Thymoma Presenting Marked Improvement After Steroid Therapy.

Subacute sensory ataxic neuronopathy is a well-known form of paraneoplastic syndrome. Most sensory neuronopathies are associated with small cell lung cancer and anti-Hu antibodies, and usually show only slight improvement with immunotherapy. To date, there have been few reports of neuropathy associated with thymoma and no treatment strategy has been established for thymoma-related neuropathy.

Evaluation of cerebral blood flow in older patients with status epilepticus using arterial spin labeling.

Introduction: Although older patients with status epilepticus (SE) have a high mortality rate and poor outcome, it is difficult to perform emergent electroencephalography (EEG) to diagnose SE in community hospitals. Arterial spin labeling (ASL) is a non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique that can rapidly assess cerebral blood flow (CBF). Further, ASL can detect increased CBF in the ictal period.

Clinical diagnostic utility of contrast-enhanced three-dimensional fluid-attenuated inversion recovery for selection of brain biopsy sites in neurosarcoidosis: A case report.

Neurosarcoidosis is difficult to diagnose, because definite diagnosis requires detailed histology of the central nervous system. Three-dimensional contrast-enhanced fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (CE-FLAIR) is more useful for detecting leptomeningeal lesions compared with 3D CE-T1 weighted imaging. However, the clinical diagnostic utility of 3D CE-FLAIR for neurosarcoidosis is unclear.

Association of survival and hyperthermia after rt-PA for ischemic stroke.

Background: Hyperthermia in patients with acute ischemic stroke is associated with poor outcome. Although previous studies have shown a negative effect on functional outcome, even in patients treated with intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA), the effect on survival remains unclear.

Aims Of The Study: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between the functional and survival prognosis and hyperthermia in patients with acute ischemic stroke treated with rt-PA.

The factors associated with impulse control behaviors in Parkinson's disease: A 2-year longitudinal retrospective cohort study.

Introduction: Impulse control behaviors (ICBs) are impulsive-compulsive behaviors often associated with dopamine replacement therapy in Parkinson's disease (PD). Although remission can occur in ICB, only four reports on the ratio of remission and the persistence of ICB have been published, and the associated factors with ICB remission or persistence have been little known. Therefore, we conducted a longitudinal assessment of the remission, persistence, and development of ICB and those associated factors in patients with PD.

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy associated with thymoma with immunodeficiency: a case report and literature review.

Background: The development of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is associated with severe cellular immunosuppression. Good's syndrome (GS) is a rare immunodeficiency syndrome related to thymoma, with the development of humoral as well as cellular immunosuppression; however, there are few reports of PML due to GS. One report suggested that the neurological symptoms of PML related to thymoma may be improved by a reduction of immunosuppressive therapy for myasthenia gravis (MG).

The Differential Diagnosis of Acute Onset Truncal Ataxia: The Importance of Dysgeusia in Miller Fisher Syndrome.

Miller Fisher syndrome (MFS) can be difficult to diagnose, particularly in mild cases where some of the standard triad of symptoms (external ophthalmoplegia, ataxia, and loss of deep tendon reflex) are absent. We herein report a case of the incomplete form of MFS diagnosed in a 54-year-old Japanese man who presented only with ataxia symptoms and was positive for the anti-GQ1b antibody. However, the patient also suffered from dysgeusia, a significant impairment of taste perception.

Utility of nerve conduction studies for diagnosis of injury to the medial branch of the superficial radial nerve.

Introduction: The clinical utility of nerve conduction study (NCS) for the distal medial branch of the superficial radial nerve (SRN) has not yet been clarified. Therefore, we investigated the clinical utility of NCS in patients with suspected SRN injury and compared the results with those in healthy control subjects.

Methods: Bilateral NCS of the medial branch of the SRN was performed in two patients with suspected injury of the medial branch of the SRN, and in 20 healthy control subjects.

LSVT-BIG Improves UPDRS III Scores at 4 Weeks in Parkinson's Disease Patients with Wearing Off: A Prospective, Open-Label Study.

The efficacy of LSVT-BIG for advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) patients with wearing off remains to be determined. Therefore, we evaluated whether LSVT-BIG improves motor disability in eight PD patients with wearing off. Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) scores, daily off time, and mobility assessments were evaluated during the "on" time before and after the LSVT-BIG course.

Dermatomal Sensory Manifestations in Opalski Syndrome.

A 31-year-old Japanese woman presented with sudden-onset unstable gait followed by nuchal pain. A neurological examination revealed right-sided limb weakness and decreased pain and thermal sensation on the left side below the level of the L1 dermatome. A lower lateral medullary infarction with ipsilateral hemiplegia, known as Opalski syndrome, caused by spontaneous vertebral artery dissection was diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging.

Elevated pain threshold in patients with asymptomatic diabetic neuropathy: an intraepidermal electrical stimulation study.

Introduction: The loss of epidermal nerve fibers is regarded as an early pathological change in human diabetes. We investigated epidermal Aδ nerve fiber function by examining pain threshold by means of intraepidermal electrical stimulation (IES) in early diabetic neuropathy.

Methods: We recruited 20 asymptomatic diabetic patients.

Hypertrophic pachymeningitis accompanying neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder: A case report.

We report a case of idiopathic cerebral hypertrophic pachymeningitis accompanying neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder. No other identifiable cause of pachymeningitis was detected. Corticosteroid therapy was effective for both diseases.

Effect of educational television commercial on pre-hospital delay in patients with ischemic stroke.

Administering intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (r-tPA) within 4.5 h or endovascular procedures within 8 h of ischemic stroke onset may reduce the risk of disability. The effectiveness of media campaigns to raise stroke awareness and shorten pre-hospital delay is unclear.