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Meditsinskaia Sestra Apr 1984
Topics: Diagnosis, Differential; Humans; Ischemia; Paralysis; Radiculopathy; Sciatica; Spinal Cord
PubMed: 6563361
DOI: No ID Found -
Veterinary Parasitology Oct 1989The epidemiology of Karoo paralysis, induced by the tick Ixodes rubicundus, was investigated in a paralysis-enzootic area of the southwestern Orange Free State, Republic...
The epidemiology of Karoo paralysis, induced by the tick Ixodes rubicundus, was investigated in a paralysis-enzootic area of the southwestern Orange Free State, Republic of South Africa. Sheep became paralysed during the last week of April and the first week of May during the 1985 and 1986 seasons, respectively. Paralysis cases were recorded up until July, but most paralysis cases occurred during the first week of May with a second but smaller peak occurring during June. Tick numbers on paralysed sheep closely followed peak periods in paralysis. A total of 65 and 50% of the naive sheep became paralysed during the 1985 and 1986 seasons, respectively. The seasonal pattern of tick infestation by female I. rubicundus was similar on both previously exposed and on naive sheep. The results of this study indicate that a certain number of ticks per kilogram host body mass is required before symptoms of paresis of paralysis are observed. In general the tick burden per kilogram host mass was significantly greater in paralysed compared to non-paralysed sheep. The range in the number of ticks per kilogram host mass may, however, overlap between non-paralysed and paralysed groups. Previously exposed or previously paralysed sheep are less susceptible to paralysis in the following year. Differences in susceptibility between individual sheep seems likely.
Topics: Analysis of Variance; Animals; Paralysis; Sheep; Sheep Diseases; South Africa; Tick Infestations; Ticks
PubMed: 2815541
DOI: 10.1016/0304-4017(89)90141-6 -
Neuroscience 1999Transient paralysis of the soleus muscle in neonatal rats leads to permanent muscle weakness, loss of muscle fibres and motoneuron death. Application of leupeptin, an...
Transient paralysis of the soleus muscle in neonatal rats leads to permanent muscle weakness, loss of muscle fibres and motoneuron death. Application of leupeptin, an inhibitor of a calcium-activated neutral protease, to the neuromuscular junction is known to enhance the maintenance of neuromuscular contacts during development and axonal sprouting. Here, we show that treatment of soleus muscles with leupeptin as they recover from a period of paralysis rescues motoneurons that would otherwise die. The number of motoneurons to the soleus muscle was established by retrograde labelling with horseradish peroxidase eight to 10 weeks after recovery from paralysis. There were only 38.4 (+/-2.8 S.E.M., n=5) motoneurons innervating the soleus muscle that had been paralysed with alpha-bungarotoxin, compared to 58.2 (+/-3.1 S.E.M., n=5) to the control untreated soleus. Thus, the number of motoneurons to the soleus muscle on the alpha-bungarotoxin-treated side was 66.9% (+/-6.2% S.E.M., n=5) of the control side. In those animals where paralysis of the soleus muscle was followed three days later by treatment with leupeptin, the number of labelled motoneurons on the treated side of the spinal cord was 61.5 (+/-4.6 S.E.M., n=4) and that on the contralateral untreated control side was 59 (+/-3.8 S.E.M., n=4). This improvement in motoneuron survival in the leupeptin-treated animals is also confirmed by counts of the number of motor units in the soleus muscle obtained by recording muscle tension. In animals that had their soleus muscles paralysed at birth, only 21 (+/-0.7 S.E.M., n=5) motor units were present, compared to 30 motor units in control muscles. When the paralysed soleus muscle was subsequently treated with leupeptin, the number of remaining motor units in the muscle was 29.8 (+/- 1.0 S.E.M., n=5). In addition, the force output of the soleus muscles that had undergone a period of neonatal paralysis was calculated for both the NaCl- and leupeptin-treated animals. The results showed that paralysis at birth results in a reduction in weight and force output of the soleus muscle, which is not improved following treatment with leupeptin. This study shows that application of leupeptin to the soleus muscle after alpha-bungarotoxin-induced paralysis rescues motoneurons to the soleus that would otherwise die. This effect is most likely due to stabilization of their neuromuscularjunctions.
Topics: Animals; Animals, Newborn; Bungarotoxins; Calpain; Cell Count; Cell Survival; Cholinergic Antagonists; Isometric Contraction; Leupeptins; Motor Neurons; Muscle, Skeletal; Neuromuscular Junction; Neurotoxins; Paralysis; Protease Inhibitors; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Receptors, Cholinergic
PubMed: 10473278
DOI: 10.1016/s0306-4522(99)00184-0 -
Clinical Neurophysiology : Official... Nov 2008To investigate the relationship between physical impairment and brain-computer interface (BCI) performance.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between physical impairment and brain-computer interface (BCI) performance.
METHOD
We present a meta-analysis of 29 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and six patients with other severe neurological diseases in different stages of physical impairment who were trained with a BCI. In most cases voluntary regulation of slow cortical potentials has been used as input signal for BCI-control. More recently sensorimotor rhythms and the P300 event-related brain potential were recorded.
RESULTS
A strong correlation has been found between physical impairment and BCI performance, indicating that performance worsens as impairment increases. Seven patients were in the complete locked-in state (CLIS) with no communication possible. After removal of these patients from the analysis, the relationship between physical impairment and BCI performance disappeared. The lack of a relation between physical impairment and BCI performance was confirmed when adding BCI data of patients from other BCI research groups.
CONCLUSIONS
Basic communication (yes/no) was not restored in any of the CLIS patients with a BCI. Whether locked-in patients can transfer learned brain control to the CLIS remains an open empirical question.
SIGNIFICANCE
Voluntary brain regulation for communication is possible in all stages of paralysis except the CLIS.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Brain Diseases; Communication Aids for Disabled; Computer Systems; Electroencephalography; Event-Related Potentials, P300; Female; Goals; Humans; Male; Meta-Analysis as Topic; Middle Aged; Paralysis; Periodicity; Thinking; User-Computer Interface
PubMed: 18824406
DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2008.06.019 -
Annals of Neurology Jan 2000Although the carbonic anhydrase inhibitors have been used in the treatment of the primary periodic paralyses (PPs), their efficacy has not been demonstrated in... (Clinical Trial)
Clinical Trial Randomized Controlled Trial
Although the carbonic anhydrase inhibitors have been used in the treatment of the primary periodic paralyses (PPs), their efficacy has not been demonstrated in double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. Therefore, we tested the efficacy of dichlorphenamide (DCP; Daranide), a potent carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, in the treatment of episodic weakness in the primary PPs. We performed two multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trials, one involving 42 subjects with hypokalemic periodic paralysis (HypoPP) and the other involving 31 subjects with potassium-sensitive periodic paralysis (PSPP). In each trial, two 8-week treatment periods were separated by an active washout period of at least 9 weeks. The primary outcome variable in the HypoPP trial was the occurrence of an intolerable increase in attack severity or frequency (end point). The primary outcome variable in the PSPP trial was the number of attacks per week. In the HypoPP trial, there were 13 subjects who exhibited a preference (in terms of the end point) for either DCP or placebo, and 11 of these preferred DCP. In the PSPP trial, DCP significantly reduced attack rates relative to placebo. DCP also significantly reduced attack rates relative to placebo in the HypoPP subjects. We conclude that DCP is effective in the prevention of episodic weakness in both HypoPP and PSPP.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Child; Dichlorphenamide; Double-Blind Method; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Paralysis; Prognosis; Time Factors
PubMed: 10632100
DOI: No ID Found -
Genes & Development Dec 2005A spontaneous semidominant mutation (Ironside, Irn) was isolated in mice, leading to severe hindlimb paralysis following multiple deletions in cis at the HoxD locus. To...
A spontaneous semidominant mutation (Ironside, Irn) was isolated in mice, leading to severe hindlimb paralysis following multiple deletions in cis at the HoxD locus. To understand its cellular and molecular etiology, we embarked on a comparative analysis using systematic HoxD cluster deletions, produced via targeted meiotic recombination (TAMERE). Different lines of mice were classified according to the severity of their paralyses, and subsequent analyses revealed that multiple causative factors were involved, alone or in combination, in the occurrence of this pathology. Among them are the loss of Hoxd10 function, the sum of remaining Hoxd gene activity, and the ectopic gain of function of the neighboring gene Evx2, all contributing to the mispositioning, the absence, or misidentification of specific lumbo-sacral pools of motoneurons, nerve root homeosis, and hindlimb innervation defects. These results highlight the importance of a systematic approach when studying such clustered gene families, and give insights into the function and regulation of Hox and Evx2 genes during early spinal cord development.
Topics: Abnormalities, Multiple; Animals; DNA-Binding Proteins; Embryo, Mammalian; Extremities; Homeodomain Proteins; Lumbosacral Region; Mice; Motor Neurons; Multigene Family; Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; Mutation; Paralysis; Transcription Factors
PubMed: 16322559
DOI: 10.1101/gad.351105 -
Clinical Otolaryngology and Allied... Jun 1989If a vocal cord paralysis is termed idiopathic, no cause has been identified. The aim of this study was to assess the prognosis and management of patients with an...
If a vocal cord paralysis is termed idiopathic, no cause has been identified. The aim of this study was to assess the prognosis and management of patients with an idiopathic vocal cord paralysis. Data of 42 such patients have been stored prospectively. During follow-up 4 patients were found to have malignancies that in retrospect had been responsible for their vocal cord paralysis. Of the remainder approximately half either recovered vocal cord function or regained a near normal voice due to compensatory movement by the non-paralysed cord. No patient over the age of 60 compensated. No patient either recovered vocal cord function or compensated more than 12 months after the onset of his paralysis. In conclusion, patients with an idiopathic vocal cord paralysis should be suspected of harbouring a malignancy unless vocal cord mobility recovers, and management of the laryngeal dysfunction should be expectant for up to 12 months.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prognosis; Prospective Studies; Vocal Cord Paralysis
PubMed: 2743614
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2273.1989.tb00369.x -
Acta Neurologica Belgica Dec 1996Over a two-year period two patients were admitted to the hospital with episodes of paralysis and hypokalemia. In the first patient, familial hypokalemic periodic...
Over a two-year period two patients were admitted to the hospital with episodes of paralysis and hypokalemia. In the first patient, familial hypokalemic periodic paralysis was initially suspected. Only several months later was Graves' disease diagnosed and this diagnosis linked to thyrotoxic periodic paralysis. The second patient came to notice after treatment with thyreostatic drugs was stopped prematurely and paralysis together with hypokalemia developed. Thyrotoxic periodic paralysis, being rare outside Asia, closely mimics the clinical presentation of familial hypokalemic periodic paralysis. Mainly men in the third decade with a negative family history are affected. Graves' disease is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism. This disorder is not always clinically apparent since signs of hyperthyroidism may be easily missed. Therefore thyroid function tests are part of the diagnostic workup of hypokalemic periodic paralysis. Correction of thyroid function is essential to treatment. The pathophysiology is still controversial.
Topics: Antithyroid Agents; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Graves Disease; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Paralyses, Familial Periodic; Paralysis; Periodicity; Thyroid Crisis; Thyroid Function Tests; Thyrotoxicosis
PubMed: 9008779
DOI: No ID Found -
The Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary... Sep 1981An experiment was undertaken to determine whether an overdose of the anthelmintic parbendazole could cause paralysis in lambs when given to ewes during the early stages...
An experiment was undertaken to determine whether an overdose of the anthelmintic parbendazole could cause paralysis in lambs when given to ewes during the early stages of pregnancy. Out of a total of 68 lambs, born from ewes treated at various stages of gestation with parbendazole at 180 mg/kg, 5 showed the paralysis syndrome, 5 showed skeletal deformities, 2 were ataxic, while 1 foetus was aborted. The ewes giving birth to paralysed lambs had been treated with parbendazole at 30, 32, 37 and 53 days of gestation. Cerebral hypoplasia was observed in 2 of these lambs, while 2 others showed internal hydrocephaly. Histopathological lesions observed in the lambs with cerebral hypoplasia included gliosis and areas of encephalomalacia in the cerebral white matter. Lesions present in the spinal cords of the 2 ataxic lambs included hydromyelia, syringomyelia, duplication of the spinal canal and an abnormal position of the canal. This is the first report describing brain lesions in lambs as a result of an overdose of parbendazole.
Topics: Abnormalities, Drug-Induced; Animals; Ataxia; Benzimidazoles; Bone and Bones; Female; Paralysis; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications; Sheep; Sheep Diseases
PubMed: 6895936
DOI: No ID Found -
Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery 1993Permanent deficiency in abduction and external rotation of the arm seen after brachial plexus injury may be corrected by a levator scapulae transposition onto the... (Review)
Review
Permanent deficiency in abduction and external rotation of the arm seen after brachial plexus injury may be corrected by a levator scapulae transposition onto the supraspinatus, while the teres major, associated or not with latissimus dorsi, is transferred onto the infraspinatus muscle. Transposed in a bipolar manner, the latissimus may compensate the deltoid muscle. Associated measures have to be carried out in children with deformities caused by obstetrical palsy. A paralysed serratus anterior is best compensated by a transfer of the pectoralis major together with pectoralis minor muscle.
Topics: Brachial Plexus; Elbow; Humans; Muscle Contraction; Muscles; Paralysis; Range of Motion, Articular; Shoulder; Tendon Transfer
PubMed: 8467603
DOI: 10.1016/0303-8467(93)90042-f