Cerebral microembolism during transcatheter closure of patent foramen ovale.

Background: Although transcatheter closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) and atrial septal defect (ASD) has become a commonly performed intervention, the incidence of cerebral embolism with or without neurological deficits during such procedures has not been studied.

Methods: We monitored the middle cerebral artery in two different depths (48 mm and 53 mm) by continuous transcranial Doppler ultrasound during transcatheter PFO closure in 35 consecutive patients (F/M 20/15, mean age 47 +/- 11 years) and during ASD closure in 8 patients (F/M 7/1, mean age 45 +/- 5 years). All automatically detected high intensity transient signals (HITS) were manually reviewed to eliminate artifacts.

Factors influencing quality of life in multiple sclerosis patients: disability, depressive mood, fatigue and sleep quality.

Objectives: In a series of 504 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), quality of life (QOL) and its main clinical and demographic determinants were assessed in comparison with healthy individuals.

Materials And Methods: A postal questionnaire with self-completed measures of disability (Expanded Disability Status Scale, EDSS), QOL (Quality of Life Index, QLI), depressive mood (Self-rating Depression Scale, SDS), fatigue severity (Fatigue Severity Scale, FSS) and sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, PSQI) was sent to this sample of MS patients.

Results: Most patients were severely disabled; almost half were mildly to severely depressed, suffering from reduced sleep quality and/or fatigue.

Effect of pretreatment with statins on the severity of acute ischemic cerebrovascular events.

Objective: Treatment with statins reduces the risk of ischemic stroke among patients at increased risk for vascular disease. Recent experimental data suggest neuroprotective properties of statins in acute cerebral ischemia. We investigated whether a premedication with statins is associated with a better outcome in patients with acute ischemic cerebrovascular events.

Is elevated mean platelet volume associated with a worse outcome in patients with acute ischemic cerebrovascular events?

Background And Purpose: Increased mean platelet volume (MPV), indicating higher platelet reactivity, is associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction. Higher levels of MPV have been found in patients with acute ischemic stroke than in control subjects. Data from smaller studies regarding an association between MPV and stroke severity and outcome have been controversial.

Olfaction and depth of word processing: a magnetoencephalographic study.

Using a whole-cortex magnetoencephalograph, magnetic field changes were recorded to describe brain activities related to simultaneous visual and olfactory processing and to detect odor-related influences on verbal information processing. Words had to be either shallowly (nonsemantic) or deeply (semantic) encoded by healthy young subjects, each of these tasks under two different kinds of olfactory stimulation. After each encoding phase, word recognition performance was tested.

Evidence of conscious and subconscious olfactory information processing during word encoding: a magnetoencephalographic (MEG) study.

The present study was meant to distinguish between unconscious and conscious olfactory information processing and to investigate the influence of olfaction on word information processing. Magnetic field changes were recorded in healthy young participants during deep encoding of visually presented words whereby some of the words were randomly associated with an odor. All recorded data were then split into two groups.

Current strategies of secondary prevention after a cerebrovascular event: the Vienna stroke registry.

Background And Purpose: Oral anticoagulation (OAC) and antiplatelet drugs are effective in the secondary prevention of ischemic cerebrovascular events. Only few data exist about the factors influencing the choice of a specific therapy for secondary prevention in patients with a recent stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA).

Methods: Within a cross-sectional study, nested in a cohort we identified 931 patients with a recent ischemic stroke or TIA who were discharged with OAC or with one of the antiplatelet medications aspirin, clopidogrel, or the combination of aspirin and extended-release dipyridamole.

The natural history of Parkinson's disease.

A large body of evidence indicates that the progression of Parkinson's disease (PD) may be fast in the preclinical stage as well as during the first years of the disease, with a subsequent slowing down of the disease process. As has been shown in the Deprenyl and Tocopherol Antioxidative Therapy of Parkinsonism (DATATOP) study, the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor examination scores declined at a rate of 8 to 9% per year in untreated patients. A subgroup of levodopa-naive DATATOP patients ("survivors") showed a much slower rate of progression, in the order of 3% per year, suggesting a more benign disease course.