Reflex Cough and Disease Duration as Predictors of Swallowing Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease.

Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) have progressive and pervasive disorders of airway protection. Recent work has highlighted the relationship between reflex and voluntary cough and swallowing safety. The goal of this study was to test the sensitivity and specificity of several airway protective and disease-specific factors for predicting swallowing safety outcomes in PD.

Variables associated with physical health-related quality of life in Parkinson's disease patients presenting for deep brain stimulation.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) benefits Parkinson's disease (PD) patient's quality of life specially in domains as mobility, activities of daily living (ADL) and bodily discomfort (BD), but little is known about the variables associated with these HRQOL domains in patients presenting for DBS. The objective is to evaluate variables associated with of HRQOL in a Brazilian sample of PD patients presenting for DBS treatment, specifically in the domains related with motor symptoms. In a cross-sectional study of 59 PD patients evaluated at outpatient Unit for Movement Disorders, multiple linear regression analysis was performed to identify independent variables associated with mobility, ADL and BD domains of the 39-item Parkinson's disease questionnaire (PDQ-39).

Apathy, Novelty Processing, and the P3 Potential in Parkinson's Disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by deficits in goal-directed behavior as well as mood and motivational symptoms, including apathy, depression, and anxiety. The present study investigated novelty processing in PD, using event-related potentials (ERPs) to characterize electrophysiological reflections of visual novelty processing. Since apathy has been associated with decreased novelty processing (P3 potentials) in highly apathetic PD patients, we were particularly interested to see if this relationship exists in a sample of PD patients with heterogeneous levels of apathy.

Functional MRI of disease progression in Parkinson disease and atypical parkinsonian syndromes.

Objective: To explore longitudinal changes in brain activity in patients with Parkinson disease (PD), multiple system atrophy (MSA), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) using task-based functional MRI (fMRI).

Methods: A total of 112 individuals were scanned 1 year apart while performing a unimanual grip force task: 46 PD, 13 MSA, 19 PSP, and 34 healthy controls. The outcome measure was percent signal change in prespecified regions of interest: putamen, primary motor cortex (M1), supplementary motor area (SMA), and superior motor regions of the cerebellum (lobules V-VI).

Thalamocortical network activity enables chronic tic detection in humans with Tourette syndrome.

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by multiple motor and vocal tics. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an emerging therapy for severe cases of TS. We studied two patients with TS implanted with bilateral Medtronic Activa PC + S DBS devices, capable of chronic recordings, with depth leads in the thalamic centromedian-parafascicular complex (CM-PF) and subdural strips over the precentral gyrus.

Laterality of repetitive finger movement performance and clinical features of Parkinson's disease.

Impairments in acoustically cued repetitive finger movement often emerge at rates near to and above 2Hz in persons with Parkinson's Disease (PD) in which some patients move faster (hastening) and others move slower (bradykinetic). The clinical features impacting this differential performance of repetitive finger movement remain unknown. The purpose of this study was to compare repetitive finger movement performance between the more and less affected side, and the difference in clinical ratings among performance groups.

Scheduled, intermittent stimulation of the thalamus reduces tics in Tourette syndrome.

Introduction: Personalized, scheduled deep brain stimulation in Tourette syndrome (TS) may permit clinically meaningful tic reduction while reducing side effects and increasing battery life. Here, we evaluate scheduled DBS applied to TS at two-year follow-up.

Methods: Five patients underwent bilateral centromedian thalamic (CM) region DBS.

A Method for Automated Classification of Parkinson's Disease Diagnosis Using an Ensemble Average Propagator Template Brain Map Estimated from Diffusion MRI.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common and debilitating neurodegenerative disorder that affects patients in all countries and of all nationalities. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is currently one of the most widely used diagnostic imaging techniques utilized for detection of neurologic diseases. Changes in structural biomarkers will likely play an important future role in assessing progression of many neurological diseases inclusive of PD.

Parkinson's disease and the Stroop color word test: processing speed and interference algorithms.

Objective: Processing speed alters the traditional Stroop calculations of interference. Consequently, alternative algorithms for calculating Stroop interference have been introduced to control for processing speed, and have done so in a multiple sclerosis sample. This study examined how these processing speed correction algorithms change interference scores for individuals with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD, n = 58) and non-PD peers (n = 68).

Deep brain stimulation for the treatment of uncommon tremor syndromes.

Introduction: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has become a standard therapy for the treatment of select cases of medication refractory essential tremor and Parkinson's disease however the effectiveness and long-term outcomes of DBS in other uncommon and complex tremor syndromes has not been well established. Traditionally, the ventralis intermedius nucleus (VIM) of the thalamus has been considered the main target for medically intractable tremors; however alternative brain regions and improvements in stereotactic techniques and hardware may soon change the horizon for treatment of complex tremors.

Areas Covered: In this article, we conducted a PubMed search using different combinations between the terms 'Uncommon tremors', 'Dystonic tremor', 'Holmes tremor' 'Midbrain tremor', 'Rubral tremor', 'Cerebellar tremor', 'outflow tremor', 'Multiple Sclerosis tremor', 'Post-traumatic tremor', 'Neuropathic tremor', and 'Deep Brain Stimulation/DBS'.

Benign tremulous Parkinsonism: a unique entity or another facet of Parkinson's disease?

Benign tremulous parkinsonism (BTP) is characterized by a prominent tremor that occurs both at rest and with action in conjunction with other mild features of parkinsonism. The progression of symptoms is typically slow and there is often a positive family history. Although BTP is included within the phenotypic spectrum of Parkinsonism its exact relationship with idiopathic Parkinson's disease remains unclear.

The International Deep Brain Stimulation Registry and Database for Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome: How Does It Work?

Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a neuropsychiatric disease characterized by a combination of motor and vocal tics. Deep brain stimulation (DBS), already widely utilized for Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders, is an emerging therapy for select and severe cases of TS that are resistant to medication and behavioral therapy. Over the last two decades, DBS has been used experimentally to manage severe TS cases.

Medicinal Cannabis for Parkinson's Disease: Practices, Beliefs, and Attitudes Among Providers at National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence.

Background: Legalization of the medical use of cannabis for Parkinson's disease (PD) has bypassed the traditional drug-approval process, leaving physicians with little evidence with which to guide patients.

Objective: The goal of this study was to gather data on the cannabis-related prescribing practices and views regarding potential risks and benefits of cannabis among experts caring for patients with PD.

Methods: An anonymous, 73-item online survey was conducted through an online service (SurveyMonkey) and included neurologists at all National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence.

Interdisciplinary Parkinson's Disease Deep Brain Stimulation Screening and the Relationship to Unintended Hospitalizations and Quality of Life.

Objective: To investigate the impact of pre-operative deep brain stimulation (DBS) interdisciplinary assessments on post-operative hospitalizations and quality of life (QoL).

Background: DBS has been utilized successfully in Parkinson's disease (PD) for the treatment of tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia, off time, and motor fluctuations. Although DBS is becoming a more common management approach there are no standardized criteria for selection of DBS candidates, and sparse data exist to guide the use of interdisciplinary evaluations for DBS screening.

Post-mortem Findings in Huntington's Deep Brain Stimulation: A Moving Target Due to Atrophy.

Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been shown to be effective for Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, and primary dystonia. However, mixed results have been reported in Huntington's disease (HD).

Case Report: A single case of HD DBS was identified from the University of Florida DBS Brain Tissue Network.

Deep brain stimulation improves gait velocity in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

In Parkinson's disease (PD), slow gait speed is significantly related to clinical ratings of disease severity, impaired performance of daily activities, as well as increased overall disability. Conducting a meta-analysis on gait speed is an objective and quantitative technique to summarize the effectiveness of DBS and to determine the effect sizes for future studies. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis that analyzed the effects of deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery on gait speed in patients with PD to gain fundamental insight into the nature of therapeutic effectiveness.

Proceedings of the Third Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank: A Review of Emerging Issues and Technologies.

The proceedings of the 3rd Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank summarize the most contemporary clinical, electrophysiological, imaging, and computational work on DBS for the treatment of neurological and neuropsychiatric disease. Significant innovations of the past year are emphasized. The Think Tank's contributors represent a unique multidisciplinary ensemble of expert neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, engineers, and members of industry.

Free-water and BOLD imaging changes in Parkinson's disease patients chronically treated with a MAO-B inhibitor.

Rasagiline is a monoamine oxidase type B inhibitor that possesses no amphetamine-like properties, and provides symptomatic relief in early and late stages of Parkinson's disease (PD). Data in animal models of PD suggest that chronic administration of rasagiline is associated with structural changes in the substantia nigra, and raise the question whether the structure and function of the basal ganglia could be different in PD patients treated chronically with rasagiline as compared with PD patients not treated with rasagiline. Here, we performed a retrospective cross-sectional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study at 3 T that investigated nigrostriatal function and structure in PD patients who had taken rasagiline before testing (∼8 months), PD who had not taken rasagiline before testing, and age-matched controls.

Treatment of ADCY5-Associated Dystonia, Chorea, and Hyperkinetic Disorders With Deep Brain Stimulation: A Multicenter Case Series.

ADCY5 mutations have been reported as a cause of early onset hyperkinetic movements associated with delayed motor milestones, hypotonia, and exacerbation during sleep. The movement disorder may be continuous or episodic, and can vary considerably in severity within families and in individuals. The authors report a case series of 3 patients with ADCY5 mutations treated with deep brain stimulation after unsuccessful medication trials.

Use of the Xbox Kinect virtual gaming system to improve gait, postural control and cognitive awareness in an individual with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.

Purpose: The purpose of this report is to describe an intervention using the Xbox Kinect virtual gaming system to improve gait, postural control and cognitive awareness in order to reduce falls and improve the quality of life for an individual with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.

Methods: A 65-year-old woman with a five-year history of PSP and frequent falls presented for physical therapy. Her case was complicated by poor ability to visually track objects, axial rigidity, retropulsion, poor postural control with reaching and declines in cognitive awareness.

Randomized, Blinded Pilot Testing of Nonconventional Stimulation Patterns and Shapes in Parkinson's Disease and Essential Tremor: Evidence for Further Evaluating Narrow and Biphasic Pulses.

Objectives: Evidence suggests that nonconventional programming may improve deep brain stimulation (DBS) therapy for movement disorders. The primary objective was to assess feasibility of testing the tolerability of several nonconventional settings in Parkinson's disease (PD) and essential tremor (ET) subjects in a single office visit. Secondary objectives were to explore for potential efficacy signals and to assess the energy demand on the implantable pulse-generators (IPGs).