Publications by authors named "Samar S Ayache"

: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disorder with poorly detailed subtypes/dimensions, such as religious OCD (ROCD). To date, little is known about ROCD characteristics. This work aimed to describe the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, along with the religiosity and spirituality, of Lebanese Muslim citizens diagnosed with OCD and exhibiting religious symptoms.

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Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a central nervous system disease involving gray and white matters. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could help identify potential markers of disease evolution, disability, and treatment response. This work evaluates the relationship between intracortical inhibition and facilitation, motor cortex lesions, and corticospinal tract (CST) integrity.

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  • A trial was conducted to assess the effects of the EXOPULSE Mollii Suit, a device that provides electrical nerve stimulation, on fibromyalgia symptoms including pain, fatigue, and quality of life.
  • The study involved 33 adult patients with fibromyalgia in a double-blind, sham-controlled trial, demonstrating significantly reduced pain and improved symptoms after using the active device compared to the sham treatment.
  • Results showed that after a 4-week active treatment period, most patients reported improvements in various outcomes, highlighting the potential clinical benefits of the EXOPULSE Mollii Suit for managing fibromyalgia symptoms.
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  • The commentary discusses a study that explores how fatigue in multiple sclerosis (MS) is influenced by the brain's ability to perceive internal bodily signals (interoception) and think about thoughts (metacognition).
  • It highlights the role of white matter dysconnectivity, which refers to disruptions in the brain's communication pathways, in contributing to the experience of fatigue in MS patients.
  • The authors aim to connect these concepts to better understand the underlying mechanisms of fatigue in MS, ultimately improving diagnosis and treatment approaches.
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  • * Researchers conducted nTMS motor mapping on 68 patients, analyzing factors like motor evoked potentials (MEPs) and cortical motor map sizes, and correlated these with clinical measures of disability, strength, and dexterity.
  • * Findings indicate that patients with higher levels of disability had larger cortical motor maps and notable changes in MEP parameters, suggesting that nTMS could be a valuable objective method for monitoring motor function in clinical practice for those with MS.
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Objective: Electroencephalography (EEG) can highlight significant changes in spontaneous electrical activity of the brain produced by altered brain network connectivity linked to inflammatory demyelinating lesions and neuronal loss occurring in multiple sclerosis (MS). In this review, we describe the main EEG findings reported in the literature to characterize motor network alteration in term of local activity or functional connectivity changes in patients with MS (pwMS).

Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted to include articles with quantitative analyses of resting-state EEG recordings (spectrograms or advanced methods for assessing spatial and temporal dynamics, such as coherence, theory of graphs, recurrent quantification, microstates) or dynamic EEG recordings during a motor task, with or without connectivity analyses.

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Background: Motor preparation and execution can be impaired in patients with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). These neural processes can be assessed using electroencephalography (EEG). During a self-paced movement, EEG signal amplitude decreases before movement (event-related desynchronization, ERD) and increases after movement (event-related synchronization, ERS).

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(1) Background: COVID-19 infection has affected almost 6 million people worldwide. Geniculate Ganglion Zoster resulting in Ramsay Hunt Syndrome (RHS) has been rarely described in this context. (2) Methods: Here, a case of RHS in the context of asymptomatic COVID-19 infection is reported followed by a literature review of the previously published cases (PubMed research combining "COVID-19" and "Ramsay Hunt Syndrome" or their abbreviations/synonyms, searching for data published at any time till October 2023).

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  • Fibromyalgia causes widespread chronic pain that is not fully relieved by current medications, making alternative treatments like transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TENS) necessary.
  • A new TENS device, the Exopulse Mollii Suit, allows for stimulation of up to 40 muscle groups through integrated clothing, providing a more comprehensive approach to pain relief.
  • In a study of 50 patients, significant pain reduction was noted immediately after and 24 hours post-treatment, suggesting temporary analgesic effects, but more research is needed to evaluate the long-term benefits on pain and quality of life.
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Meningiomas arise from arachnoidal cap cells of the meninges, constituting the most common type of central nervous system tumors, and are considered benign tumors in most cases. Their incidence increases with age, and they mainly affect females, constituting 25-46% of primary spinal tumors. Spinal meningiomas could be detected incidentally or be unraveled by various neurological symptoms (, back pain, sphincter dysfunction, sensorimotor deficits).

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Following the great success of the first series of the Special Issue "Brain Stimulation and Neuroplasticity" [...

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  • Alexithymia, a personality trait characterized by difficulty in recognizing and describing emotions, is notably present in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), with prevalence rates ranging from 10% to 53%.
  • It is associated with higher levels of anxiety, depression, and fatigue, though its links to cognitive performance and social cognition haven't been thoroughly explored.
  • Further research, including large-scale studies with neuroimaging, is essential to understand the impact of alexithymia on quality of life and to improve clinical management for MS patients.
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Background: Tarlov or perineural cysts are dilations of nerve roots resulting from a pathologically increased cerebrospinal fluid pressure. Although it is very common in the general population, most of these cysts remain asymptomatic. In some cases, they can evolve and exert pressure on neural elements, independently from their initial size.

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Fatigue is the most commonly reported symptom in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). It is a worrisome, frequent, and debilitating manifestation that could occur at any time during the course of MS and in all its subtypes. It could engender professional, familial, and socioeconomic consequences and could severely compromise the patients' quality of life.

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Introduction: A significant number of patients with a peripheral neuropathy have IgM monoclonal gammopathy (IgM-MG). In this work, we encompassed the spectrum and outcome of IgM-related neuropathies (IgM-NP) in a large monocentric cohort of patients with IgM-MG.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the neurological and hematological findings and the course of neuropathy in all patients with IgM-MG over a five-year period in our center (Henri Mondor hospital, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), France).

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Objectives: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system, characterized by the accumulation of demyelinating lesions and axonal loss over its course. This study aimed to increase current knowledge of motor preparation in this condition, by assessing the two components of the Bereitschaftspotential (BP1 and BP2), also known as the readiness potential.

Methods: Twelve patients with MS and ten age- and gender-matched healthy controls (HC) were included.

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The objective of the different types of treatments for a spinal metastasis is to provide the best oncological and functional result with the least aggressive side effects. Initially created in 2010 to help clinicians in the management of vertebral metastases, the Spine Instability Neoplastic Score (SINS) has quickly found its place in the decision making and the treatment of patients with metastatic spinal disease. Here we conduct a review of the literature describing the different changes that occurred with the SINS score in the last ten years.

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Background: Sleep complaints are commonly reported by patients with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Several pharmacological and alternative interventions have been tried, but are usually faced by limited efficacy. Hence, exploring other methods such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), might be of interest.

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Fatigue is a frequent and debilitating symptom in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Affective manifestations are also of high prevalence in this population and can drastically impact the patients' functioning. A considerable proportion of patients with MS suffer from cognitive deficits affecting general and social cognitive domains.

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Autoimmune brainstem encephalitis (BSE) is a rare neurological condition with a wide range of underlying etiologies. It can be subdivided into two broad groups: a primary inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (CNS) or a brainstem disorder secondary to systemic diseases where the CNS is only one of many affected organs. Symptoms range from mild to life-threatening manifestations.

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Electrical or magnetic stimulation methods for brain or nerve modulation have been widely known for centuries, beginning with the Atlantic torpedo fish for the treatment of headaches in ancient Greece, followed by Luigi Galvani's experiments with frog legs in baroque Italy, and leading to the interventional use of brain stimulation methods across Europe in the 19th century [...

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Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been proposed to treat neuropathic pain but the quality of evidence remains low. We aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of neuronavigated rTMS to the primary motor cortex (M1) or dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in neuropathic pain over 25 weeks. We carried out a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial at four outpatient clinics in France.

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