Association of Transcranial Doppler Microembolic Signal With Short-Term Mortality in Acute Ischemic Stroke and Active Cancer.

Background: This study aimed to clarify the characteristics and survival prediction value of transcranial Doppler microembolic signals (MES) in patients with acute cerebral infarction and active cancer.

Methods And Results: Between 2017 and 2022, 1089 cases of acute cerebral infarction were recorded within 7 days of disease onset. Among them, transcranial Doppler was successful in 33 patients who had active cancer, and these data were analyzed in this study.

Association of Age-Related Spontaneous Internal Jugular Vein Reflux with Cognitive Impairment and Incident Dementia.

Background: It remains unclear whether changes in the venous circulation contribute to cognitive decline.

Objective: This study aimed to clarify whether the spontaneous jugular vein reflux (JVR) is associated with cognitive impairment and incident dementia.

Methods: Patients with any evidence of cerebral vessel disease on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were consecutively enrolled between October 2015 to July 2019.

Prevalence of Microembolic Signals in Embolic Stroke of Undetermined Source and Other Subtypes of Ischemic Stroke.

Background and Purpose- Embolic stroke of undetermined source (ESUS) has been proposed to cause thromboembolic infarction from unknown but potential embolic sources. However, an embolus remains undetected in ESUS. The goal of this study was to characterize the prevalence and risk factors of microembolic signals (MESs) in ESUS.

Differences in Endothelial Function between Ischemic Stroke Subtypes.

Background: Endothelial dysfunction plays a key role in the development of ischemic stroke. However, the relationship between endothelial function and stroke subtypes has not been thoroughly examined.

Methods: We measured the percentage of brachial flow-mediated vasodilatation (%FMD) in 62 patients with chronic stroke and 13 age- and sex-matched control patients.

Ulcerated carotid plaques with ultrasonic echolucency are causatively associated with thromboembolic cerebrovascular events.

The presence of ulcerated carotid plaques is a risk factor for ischemic stroke, which is associated with thromboembolism. We evaluated the relationship between ulcerated carotid plaques and cerebrovascular events in patients with acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack. We extracted 48 consecutive patients with ulcerated carotid plaques from a cohort of 1111 patients with acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack.

Renin-angiotensin system blockade safely reduces blood pressure in patients with minor ischemic stroke during the acute phase.

The ACCESS (Acute Candesartan Cilexetil Therapy in Stroke Survivors) study found that administration of candesartan in the acute phase of stroke confers a long-term benefit in patients who have sustained acute ischemic stroke. This treatment did not significantly reduce blood pressure (BP) during the acute phase, however. We assessed the short-term safety of reducing BP with renin-angiotensin system blockade in hypertensive patients who sustained acute ischemic stroke.

Smell identification in Japanese Parkinson's disease patients: using the odor stick identification test for Japanese subjects.

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to clarify the olfactory functions of Japanese patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD) using the odor stick identification test for Japanese (OSIT-J).

Methods: Fifty-four non-demented IPD patients (33 men and 21 women), ranging in age from 43 to 81 years (69.7+/-8.

[QuantiFERON: an early diagnostic tool for cerebral tuberculosis].

Two cases (a 33-year-old woman and a 34-year-old man) were diagnosed as having cerebral tuberculosis. Case 1 was tuberculoma with miliary tuberculosis complicating cranial nerve palsies, and case 2 was tuberculous meningitis. Early diagnosis was difficult, because smear and PCR were negative.

Clinical characteristics of stroke patients with antiphospholipid antibodies.

Background: Antiphospholipid syndrome is important as a cause of ischemic stroke, although clinical characteristics of the syndrome are not well documented.

Methods: We analyzed differences in clinical characteristics between 40 antiphospholipid-antibody (aPL)-positive and 40 aPL-negative stroke patients.

Results: Stroke patients with aPL were significantly younger and were more likely to be women in comparison with stroke patients without aPL.

[Myelopathy in patients with antiphospholipid antibodies: clinical features, pathogenesis, and review of literature].

We report 5 patients with anti-cardiolipin IgM-positive myelopathy. The lengths of spinal lesions were over two vertebral segments in 4 patients. Four cases showed subacute onset, and 2 out of these 4 cases had inflammatory changes in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and all of their symptoms improved.

[A young patient with endometrioid adenocarcinoma who suffered Trousseau's syndrome associated with vasculitis].

A 27-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of headache, fever and right neck pain. Neurological examination revealed mild meningeal signs, and hyper-reflexia in all extremities. In the laboratory tests, white-cell count was 13,000/mm3, rheumatoid factor(RF) and C-reactive protein(CRP) were positive.

[An ambulatory respirometer (Hotmate) as a tool for screening of sleep apnea syndrome].

The gold standard diagnostic method for sleep apnea syndrome(SAS) is overnight polysomnography(PSG), but is costly in terms of time and money. We studied the usefulness of a 24-hour ambulatory respirometer equipped with oximeter(Hotmate) for screening of SAS. Seventy-six cases of suspected SAS were enrolled(68 males and 8 females, mean age 51).