Response to Cognitive Processing Therapy in Veterans With and Without Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Recent studies have called attention to the need for enhancing treatment outcome in trauma-focused psychotherapies, such as cognitive processing therapy (CPT), with veterans. Given the prevalence of posttraumatic-related sleep disturbances, and the role of sleep in emotional learning and processing, sleep quality may be a target for improving CPT outcome. Elevated rates of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have been reported in samples of veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, the impact of OSA on response to CPT is unclear.

Randomized controlled trial of intraputamenal glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor infusion in Parkinson disease.

Objective: Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) exerts potent trophic influence on midbrain dopaminergic neurons. This randomized controlled clinical trial was designed to confirm initial clinical benefits observed in a small, open-label trial using intraputamenal (Ipu) infusion of recombinant human GDNF (liatermin).

Methods: Thirty-four PD patients were randomized 1 to 1 to receive bilateral continuous Ipu infusion of liatermin 15 microg/putamen/day or placebo.

Valerian-hops combination and diphenhydramine for treating insomnia: a randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Context: Insomnia is a prevalent health complaint associated with daytime impairments, reduced quality of life, and increased health-care costs. Although it is often self-treated with herbal and dietary supplements or with over-the-counter sleep aids, there is still little evidence on the efficacy and safety of those products.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of a valerian-hops combination and diphenhydramine for the treatment of mild insomnia.

Hemochromatosis and iron therapy of Restless Legs Syndrome.

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) occurs in some persons with iron deficiency, and some persons with RLS benefit from oral iron therapy. Approximately one in 200 persons of northern European ancestry have hemochromatosis attributable to inheritance of two common mutations of the hemochromatosis-associated HFE gene on chromosome 6. We evaluated and treated a 46-year-old man with RLS who was diagnosed as having hemochromatosis after he developed new symptoms associated with taking iron therapy for RLS.

Effects of thallium ion on cellular components of the skin.

Thallium salts have been employed by dermatologists to cause depilation, and dermatologic features are prominent in thallium overdose. These features include alopecia and follicular hyperkeratosis. Administration of thallium to pregnant animals results in limb deformities, similar to those seen after thalidomide embryopathy.