Use of suggestive seizure manipulation methods in the investigation of patients with possible psychogenic nonepileptic seizures-An international ILAE survey.

Video-encephalographic (vEEG) seizure recordings make essential contributions to the differentiation of epilepsy and psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). The yield of vEEG examinations can be increased through suggestive seizure manipulation (SSM) (ie, activation/provocation/cessation procedures), but its use has raised ethical concerns. In preparation for guidelines on the investigation of patients with PNES, the ILAE PNES Task Force carried out an international survey to investigate practices of and opinions about SSM.

Access to diagnostic and therapeutic facilities for psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: An international survey by the ILAE PNES Task Force.

Objective: Studies from a small number of countries suggest that patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) have limited access to diagnostic and treatment services. The PNES Task Force of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) carried out 2 surveys to explore the diagnosis and treatment of PNES around the world.

Methods: A short survey (8 questions) was sent to all 114 chapters of the ILAE.

Do patients want choice? An observational study of neurology consultations.

Objectives: To determine how often patients are given choice in neurology outpatient consultations and whether choice is associated with greater patient satisfaction.

Methods: Prospective study in outpatient clinics in two United Kingdom centres. Interactions between 14 neurologists and 223 patients were studied.

Somatic symptom count scores do not identify patients with symptoms unexplained by disease: a prospective cohort study of neurology outpatients.

Objective: Somatic symptoms unexplained by disease are common in all medical settings. The process of identifying such patients requires a clinical assessment often supported by clinical tests. Such assessments are time-consuming and expensive.

Minimum requirements for the diagnosis of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: a staged approach: a report from the International League Against Epilepsy Nonepileptic Seizures Task Force.

An international consensus group of clinician-researchers in epilepsy, neurology, neuropsychology, and neuropsychiatry collaborated with the aim of developing clear guidance on standards for the diagnosis of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). Because the gold standard of video electroencephalography (vEEG) is not available worldwide, or for every patient, the group delineated a staged approach to PNES diagnosis. Using a consensus review of the literature, this group evaluated key diagnostic approaches.

Accelerated long-term forgetting in temporal lobe epilepsy: verbal, nonverbal and autobiographical memory.

Patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) often present with memory complaints despite performing within normal limits on standard memory tests. One possible explanation for this phenomenon is accelerated long-term forgetting (ALF). The present study investigated material-specific ALF in patients with unilateral TLE and also examined whether ALF could be demonstrated on a novel, standardized anterograde autobiographical memory (ABM) task.

A multidisciplinary approach to understanding skeletal dysplasias.

The skeletal dysplasias are a heterogeneous group of conditions of abnormal cartilage and bone development, resulting in a wide range of phenotypes of variable severity from perinatal lethality to mild short stature. Elucidation of the molecular mechanisms underlying these disorders is allowing us to understand more about the etiology of these conditions and classify them based upon the underlying gene defect. This article will discuss the development of bone and cartilage in relation to these conditions, present a clinical approach to their diagnosis and management, and consider new avenues of therapy.

High resolution micro-SPECT scanning in rats using 125I beta-CIT: effects of chronic treatment with carbamazepine.

Purpose: Carbamazepine (CBZ) is a first-line antiepileptic agent with mood-stabilizing effects in bipolar disorder. It has been reported to influence extracellular concentrations of serotonin and dopamine, suggesting an interaction with monoamine transporters. We have investigated this effect using in vivo single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in rats.