The association of theory of mind with language and visuospatial abilities in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a pilot study.

Dysfunction of social cognition is well-recognized as one of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cognitive impairments. Previous studies have mostly associated social cognition subcomponents, including Theory of Mind (ToM), with executive dysfunction using highly-demanding tasks. In the present study, we investigate dysfunction of affective ToM in a sample of ALS patients without dementia and evaluate any possible associations both with executive and non-executive dysfunction.

The ever-changing landscape in modern dentistry therapeutics - Enhancing the emptying quiver of the periodontist.

Introduction/objectives: Periodontitis comprises of a wide range of inflammatory conditions of the gums leading to soft tissue damage and attachment loss. The initiation of periodontitis constitutes a rather complex disease pathogenesis which is based on pathogenic shifts of the oral microbiota combined with the host-microbiome interactions. The severity of the periodontitis is multifactorial depending on genetic, environmental, as well as host immunity factors.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and the endocrine system: Are there any further ties to be explored?

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) belongs to the family of neurodegenerative disorders and is classified as fronto-temporal dementia (FTD), progressive muscular atrophy, primary lateral sclerosis, and pseudobulbar palsy. Even though endocrine dysfunction independently impacts the ALS-related survival rate, the complex connection between ALS and the endocrine system has not been studied in depth. Here we review earlier and recent findings on how ALS interacts with hormones of the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, the thyroid gland, the pancreas, d) the adipose tissue, e) the parathyroid glands, f) the bones, g) the adrenal glands, and the gonads (ovaries and testes).

COVID-19 vaccine safety and nocebo-prone associated hesitancy in patients with systemic rheumatic diseases: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: To describe the rate and type of adverse effects (AEs) and the frequency of disease flares after COVID-19 vaccination and to assess the reasons for vaccination hesitancy (non-vaccination) in SRD patients.

Methods: Telephone interviews were conducted of SRD patients consecutively enrolled (15/06/2021-1/7/2021). Participants were asked about the type of AEs and disease flare after vaccination.

Adverse events of active and placebo groups in SARS-CoV-2 vaccine randomized trials: A systematic review.

Background: For safety assessment in clinical trials, adverse events (AEs) are reported for the drug under evaluation and compared with AEs in the placebo group. Little is known about the nature of the AEs associated with clinical trials of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and the extent to which these can be traced to nocebo effects, where negative treatment-related expectations favor their occurrence.

Methods: In our systematic review, we compared the rates of solicited AEs in the active and placebo groups of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines approved by the Western pharmaceutical regulatory agencies.

Nocebo-Prone Behavior Associated with SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Hesitancy in Healthcare Workers.

Among healthcare workers (HCWs), SARS-CoV-2 vaccine hesitancy may be linked to a higher susceptibility to nocebo effects, i.e., adverse events (AEs) experienced after medical treatments due to negative expectations.

COVID-19 and Seasonal Influenza: No Room for Two.

Objective With the outbreak of COVID-19 in December 2019 fears were expressed for a possible twindemic in the coming flu seasons. Fortunately, this was not the case for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 flu seasons as flu showed very low historical rates during these periods. The objective of our study was to look at the existing flu data for the 2019-2021 period and analyze possible reasons for the near absence of seasonal flu.

Targeting STAT3 Signaling Pathway in Colorectal Cancer.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is a critical transcription factor that has been firmly associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) initiation and development. STAT3 mediates key inflammatory mechanisms in colitis-associated cancer, becomes excessively activated in CRC, and enhances cancer cell proliferation, tumor growth, angiogenesis, invasion, and migration. STAT3 hyperactivation in malignant cells, surrounding immune cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts, mediates inhibition of the innate and adaptive immunity of the tumor microenvironment, and, therefore, tumor evasion from the immune system.

Structured headache services as the solution to the ill-health burden of headache. 2. Modelling effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of implementation in Europe: methodology.

Background: Health economic evaluations support health-care decision-making by providing information on the costs and consequences of health interventions. No universally accepted methodology exists for modelling effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of interventions designed to close treatment gaps for headache disorders in countries of Europe (or elsewhere). Our aim here, within the European Brain Council's Value-of-Treatment project, was to develop headache-type-specific analytical models to be applied to implementation of structured headache services in Europe as the health-care solution to headache.

Duration and onset of effect of incobotulinumtoxinA for the treatment of blepharospasm in botulinum toxin-naïve subjects.

Objective: Blepharospasm is a focal dystonia whereby excessive eyelid muscle contractions cause involuntary eye closure. Botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT-A) injections are an approved treatment. This randomized placebo-controlled trial (NCT01896895; EudraCT number 2012-004821-26) assessed the efficacy, safety, and treatment effect duration of incobotulinumtoxinA (Xeomin, Merz Pharmaceuticals GmbH), a BoNT-A formulation without complexing proteins, in BoNT-A-naïve adults with blepharospasm.

Structured headache services as the solution to the ill-health burden of headache. 3. Modelling effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of implementation in Europe: findings and conclusions.

Background: There have been several calls for estimations of costs and consequences of headache interventions to inform European public-health policies. In a previous paper, in the absence of universally accepted methodology, we developed headache-type-specific analytical models to be applied to implementation of structured headache services in Europe as the health-care solution to headache. Here we apply this methodology and present the findings.

Drug tolerability: How much ambiguity can be tolerated? A systematic review of the assessment of tolerability in clinical studies.

Aims: Drug tolerability refers to the degree to which drugs' overt adverse effects can be tolerated by patients. The tolerability profile is of comparative importance to its efficacy and safety, as it largely determines adherence to treatment and ultimately treatment success or failure. However, the term is frequently used imprecisely, and it is unclear if tolerability is limited to subjective patient-reported symptoms or also covers certain objective signs and findings.

Association of the apoptotic marker APO1/Fas with children's predisposing factors for metabolic syndrome and with mean platelet volume.

Background: Apoptosis antigen 1/FAS receptor (APO1/Fas) signaling in endothelial cells plays a significant role in angiogenesis while increased mean platelet volume (MPV) is an important marker for platelet activation. We investigated the possible correlation between APO1/Fas and both metabolic parameters and platelet activity (indicated by the MPV) in a healthy pediatric population.

Methods: One hundred and eighty-five children, aged 5-17 years old, were enrolled in the study.

Structured headache services as the solution to the ill-health burden of headache: 1. Rationale and description.

In countries where headache services exist at all, their focus is usually on specialist (tertiary) care. This is clinically and economically inappropriate: most headache disorders can effectively and more efficiently (and at lower cost) be treated in educationally supported primary care. At the same time, compartmentalizing divisions between primary, secondary and tertiary care in many health-care systems create multiple inefficiencies, confronting patients attempting to navigate these levels (the "patient journey") with perplexing obstacles.

Paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration in platinum-responsive endometrial cancer: A case report and review of literature.

Paraneoplastic cerebellar ataxia is a rare immune-induced, non-metastatic neurologic syndrome, most frequently associated with gynecological cancers, which carries an abysmal prognosis. We report the case of a patient with advanced-stage uterine cancer, who developed severe pancerebellar ataxia, while in partial remission, after the completion of 3 cycles of neoadjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy. Swift initiation of immunosuppressive therapy with corticosteroids combined with plasmapheresis did not result in significant clinical benefit.

Synuclein in neurodegeneration.

Neurodegenerative diseases are a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by gradual progressive neuronal loss in the central nervous system. Unfortunately, the pathogenesis of many of these diseases remains unknown. Synucleins are a family of small, highly charged proteins expressed predominantly in neurons.

A Multicomponent Home-Based Intervention for Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in People With Dementia and Caregivers' Burden and Depression: A 6-Month Longitudinal Study.

Objectives: Many people with dementia live in their home and require ongoing care, which is often provided by informal family caregivers. Thus, we examined the effectiveness of a multicomponent home-based intervention by evaluating its impact on a) neuropsychiatric symptoms of people with dementia and b) burden and depression of their caregivers.

Methods: During the first 6 months of this prospective single-center study, we applied a home-based multicomponent intervention in 205 dyads of care-recipients and caregivers.

Diagnosis and management of migraine in ten steps.

Migraine is a disabling primary headache disorder that directly affects more than one billion people worldwide. Despite its widespread prevalence, migraine remains under-diagnosed and under-treated. To support clinical decision-making, we convened a European panel of experts to develop a ten-step approach to the diagnosis and management of migraine.

PEARL study protocol: a real-world study of fremanezumab effectiveness in patients with chronic or episodic migraine.

Fremanezumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody (IgG2Δa) that selectively targets calcitonin gene-related peptide and is approved in Europe for migraine prevention in adults with ≥4 migraine days/month. The Pan-European Real Life (PEARL) study is a 24-month, prospective, observational study of fremanezumab in chronic or episodic migraine. End points include proportion of patients with ≥50% reduction in monthly migraine days during 6 months of treatment (primary); changes in monthly migraine days, disability scores and acute headache medication use; adherence and persistence; and effectiveness in patients switching from another calcitonin gene-related peptide pathway-targeting monoclonal antibody.

Clinico-radiologic features and therapeutic strategies in tumefactive demyelination: a retrospective analysis of 50 consecutive cases.

Aims: Our goal was to expand the spectrum of clinico-radiologic characteristics and the possible therapeutic choices in patients with tumefactive demyelinating lesions (TDLs).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 50 patients with at least one TDL was performed at an academic neurology center (2008-2020).

Results: Our cohort comprised mostly women (33/50) with a mean age of 38 years at TDL onset.

Current advances in the management of cluster headaches.

: Cluster headache (CH) is probably the most severe idiopathic pain condition, yet its current medical management remains poor.: Only repurpose medicines are currently in use for the prevention of CH, partially because the pathophysiology of the condition is still elusive. In this article we performed a systematic review to evaluate the evidence for efficacy of the currently available or emerging treatments for CH.

The Role of Galcanezumab in Migraine Prevention: Existing Data and Future Directions.

Galcanezumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody blocking the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) pathway by targeting the CGRP. Data from four phase-3 randomized placebo-controlled clinical trials showed that galcanezumab is superior to placebo in reducing migraine headaches, migraine-specific quality of life, and headache-related disability. Most of the adverse events (AEs) were mild to moderate and did not affect trial completion rates significantly.

Delayed recurrent enhancing white matter lesions complicating coiling of intracranial aneurysm.

Background And Purpose: In recent years, the use of coiling has gained increased popularity for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms, and stroke physicians are confronted with rare pathologies associated with this relatively new and evolving treatment method, such as embolization of pieces of the polymeric filaments from the coils and a subsequent inflammatory response. In particular, white matter enhancing lesions are a rare complication after aneurysm endovascular therapy (EVT), suggesting a foreign body reaction to shedding of hydrophilic coating from the endovascular devices into the blood stream. The description of such a case aims to raise the clinicians' awareness of the symptomatic delayed and recurring inflammatory changes that may occur after endovascular aneurysmal treatment with the use of coiling devices.