Impact of Pediatric Posterior Fossa Tumor Treatments on Working Memory Tracts Using Resting-State fMRI and Tractography.

Background And Purpose: Working memory, a primary cognitive domain, is often impaired in pediatric brain tumor survivors, affecting their attention and processing speed. This study investigated the long-term effects of treatments, including surgery, radiotherapy (RT), and chemotherapy (CT), on working memory tracts in children with posterior fossa tumors (PFTs) using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and diffusion MRI tractography.

Methods: This study included 16 medulloblastoma (MB) survivors treated with postoperative RT and CT, 14 pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) survivors treated with surgery alone, and 16 healthy controls from the Imaging Memory after Pediatric Cancer in children, adolescents, and young adults study (NCT04324450).

Factors behind poor cognitive outcome following a thalamic stroke.

Background: Thalamic strokes produce neurological, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms depending on the thalamic nuclei involved. While traditionally associated with severe cognitive deficits, recent studies suggest more modest impairments. This study aims to identify the factors that influence the severity of cognitive impairment following thalamic stroke.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of a digital escape room for learning veterinary anatomy.

Anatomy plays a key role in veterinary training, and alternatives to traditional teaching methods, such as game-based learning and escape rooms, are emerging as innovative and effective methods. However, the effectiveness of these approaches, particularly in areas such as veterinary anatomy, remains under-researched. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a digital escape room in teaching veterinary anatomy to first-year students at the Toulouse Veterinary School.

An insight from the default mode network in patients with amnesia following left thalamic infarction involving the mediodorsal nucleus and mammillothalamic tract.

The role of the medial part of the thalamus, and in particular the mediodorsal nucleus (MD) and the mammillothalamic tract (MTT), in memory has long been studied, but their contribution remains unclear. While the main functional hypothesis regarding the MTT focuses on memory, some authors postulate that the MD plays a supervisory executive role (indirectly affecting memory retrieval) due to its dense structural connectivity with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Recently, it has been proposed that the MD, MTT and PFC form part of the DMN the default mode network (DMN).

Specifications and functional impact of a self-triggered grasp neuroprosthesis developed to restore prehension in hemiparetic post-stroke subjects.

Background: Stroke is the leading cause of acquired motor deficiencies in adults. Restoring prehension abilities is challenging for individuals who have not recovered active hand opening capacities after their rehabilitation. Self-triggered functional electrical stimulation applied to finger extensor muscles to restore grasping abilities in daily life is called grasp neuroprosthesis (GNP) and remains poorly accessible to the post-stroke population.

Hypoperfusion intensity ratio to differentiate between stroke etiologies in patients with a large vessel occlusion.

Background: Collateral circulation plays a key role in acute ischemic stroke. We sought to determine the association between the arterial collateral status, estimated by the Hypoperfusion Intensity Ratio (HIR) on perfusion MRI, and stroke etiology in anterior circulation large vessel occlusion (LVO).

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed anterior circulation LVO acute stroke patients with a baseline perfusion MRI performed within 24 h from symptom onset.

Status of surface electromyography assessment as part of clinical gait analysis in the management of patients with cerebral palsy - Outcomes of a Delphi process.

Background: The assessment of gait disorders in patients with neuromotor conditions, such as cerebral palsy (CP), has been a focus of clinical and research attention, with electromyography (EMG) offering a nuanced understanding of neurological and neuromuscular disorders. However, the interpretation of EMG data in the context of gait analysis remains challenging due to the complexity of neuromotor dynamics and variability in assessment methodologies.

Research Question: To which consensus can we get in a group of experts in the fields of neurological and neuromuscular disorders, biomechanics, and clinical gait analysis to establish standardized protocols and a common language for the measurement and analysis of EMG data in gait disorders, particularly in people living with CP?

Methods: A three-round Delphi process was conducted from February to September 2023 to gather opinions of 53 experts on the use of surface EMG data during gait in the context of CP.

How to distinguish spinocerebellar ataxia 27B from late onset cerebellar ataxia: insights from a case-control study.

Background: Spinocerebellar ataxia 27B is the most common genetic late onset cerebellar ataxia (LOCA). However, it commonly overlaps with other genetic LOCA as with the cerebellar form of multiple system atrophy (MSA-C).

Objectives: To pinpoint which clinical signs and symptoms best discriminate between FGF14 + from FGF14 - patients at symptoms' onset.

When Hemorrhage Hides a Fetal Brain Tumor, Importance of Fetal Autopsy.

We present two types of FBT for which diagnostic orientation was initially erroneous because of the challenging antenatal diagnosis of FBT. Autopsy enabled to rectify the initial antenatal diagnosis and establish the FBT phenotypic profile.

Shaping tomorrow: how the STEP training course pioneered noninvasive brain stimulation training for psychiatry in France.

Over the past three decades, non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques have gained worldwide attention and demonstrated therapeutic potential in various medical fields, particularly psychiatry. The emergence of these novel techniques has led to an increased need for robust training programs to provide practitioners, whether clinicians or scientists, with the necessary skills and knowledge. In response, a comprehensive training curriculum for NIBS in psychiatry has been developed in France.

Bioengineering the Junctional Epithelium in 3D Oral Mucosa Models.

Two-dimensional (2D) culture models and animal experiments have been widely used to study the pathogenesis of periodontal and peri-implant diseases and to test new treatment approaches. However, neither of them can reproduce the complexity of human periodontal tissues, making the development of a successful 3D oral mucosal model a necessity. The soft-tissue attachment formed around a tooth or an implant function like a biologic seal, protecting the deeper tissues from bacterial infection.

In vivo biocompatibility assessment of 3D printed bioresorbable polymers for brain tissue regeneration. A feasibility study.

Introduction: The limited capacity of brain tissue to regenerate after acute injury, hampered by cell death, edema and inflammation, has led to an interest in promising and innovative approaches such as implantable regenerative scaffolds designed to improve brain plasticity. Leveraging the capabilities of bioprinting, these scaffolds can be tailored to match the intricate architecture of the brain.

Methods: In this methodological study, we performed in vivo biocompatibility assessments after a brain lesion on three distinct bioeliminable or bioresorbable materials: Poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA), Polycaprolactone (PCL) and a PEGDA mixed with gelatin methacrylate (PEGDA-GelMA).

Measuring the impact of treatment on memory functions in pediatric posterior fossa tumor survivors using diffusion tensor imaging.

Background And Purpose: The aim of the present prospective exploratory study was to investigate the long-term impact of treatment on brain structure integrity and memory functions in pediatric posterior fossa tumor (PFT) survivors using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), to determine whether the latter could provide useful biomarkers of memory impairment.

Material And Methods: Sixty participants were included in this study, divided into three groups: 22 irradiated PFT, 17 non-irradiated PFT, and 21 healthy controls. All underwent memory tests and multimodal MRI, including a DTI sequence.

Movement Disorders and Its Variants.

Since the 2000s, Nuclear Medicine has primarily used SPECT with DaTSCAN and PET with [18F]-FDG to explore movement disorders. Recent advances in PET radiotracers, such as LBT 999 for dopamine transporters and tau tracers like flortaucipir for tauopathies, are enhancing diagnostic precision. Other PET tracers target neuroinflammation, synaptic density, cholinergic function, and adenosine A2A receptors.

Acceptability of "DIDE", a mobile application designed at facilitating care adherence of patients with substance use disorder.

Background: Attrition continues to be a major hurdle for addiction treatment. Through the prism of the attachment theory, this phenomenon can be understood as a manifestation of the patient's insecure attachment style, needing a highly-responsive care delivery. We developed an electronic health mobile application, co-designed with patients, aimed at helping healthcare teams respond to their patients' needs, and fostering adherence to care.

Galantamine combined with cognitive rehabilitation on post-stroke cognitive impairment: a proof-of-concept study.

Purpose: We conducted a proof-of-concept study to evaluate the effects of galantamine treatment versus placebo combined to cognitive rehabilitation (CR) after stroke.

Materials And Methods: In this 12-week, double blinded, randomized, controlled trial, patients were assigned to either combined approach of galantamine and CR (G-CR) or placebo and CR (P-CR). Primary outcome was the proportion of patients who crossed over from vascular cognitive disorder (VCD) to no-VCD at 12 weeks.

Early penumbral FLAIR changes predict tissue fate in patients with large vessel occlusions.

Background: In patients with an acute ischemic stroke, the penumbra is defined as ischemic tissue that remains salvageable when reperfusion occurs. However, the expected clinical recovery congruent with penumbral salvage is not always observed.

Aims: We aimed to determine whether the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-defined penumbra includes irreversible neuronal loss that impedes expected clinical recovery after reperfusion.

Association of Vascular Risk Factors and Cerebrovascular Pathology With Alzheimer Disease Pathologic Changes in Individuals Without Dementia.

Background And Objectives: Vascular risk factors (VRFs) and cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD) are common in patients with Alzheimer disease (AD). It remains unclear whether this coexistence reflects shared risk factors or a mechanistic relationship and whether vascular and amyloid pathologies have independent or synergistic influence on subsequent AD pathophysiology in preclinical stages. We investigated links between VRFs, cSVD, and amyloid levels (Aβ) and their combined effect on downstream AD biomarkers, that is, CSF hyperphosphorylated tau (P-tau), atrophy, and cognition.

Co-Construction of a Dance Class Adapted for Adolescents with Cerebral Palsy.

Aim: To co-construct a dance class adapted for adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP).

Method: A three phase co-construction process with study collaborators was used to (1) define the objectives and the obstacles and opportunities related to offering a dance class in the community through three focus groups with adolescents, their parents and study partners; (2) co-create the dance class based on the results of step 1, the expertise of the research team and the logic model of the dance class; and (3) test the dance class to evaluate its effects in relation to the defined objectives.

Results: Three objectives were identified: to have fun, promote movement, and social interaction.

Innate immune response in acute critical illness: a narrative review.

Background: Activation of innate immunity is a first line of host defense during acute critical illness (ACI) that aims to contain injury and avoid tissue damages. Aberrant activation of innate immunity may also participate in the occurrence of organ failures during critical illness. This review aims to provide a narrative overview of recent advances in the field of innate immunity in critical illness, and to consider future potential therapeutic strategies.