Zmienność odruchu mrugania u chorych na migrenę

Background and purpose Sensitization of brainstem trigeminal nuclei and activation of the trigeminovascular system are thought to play an important role in migraine. The blink reflex has become a valuable tool for investigating trigeminal nerve function. The aim of the study was to assess the differences in electrophysiological examinations of the trigeminal nerve (blink reflex) in a group of patients with migraine in comparison with a healthy control group. Material and methods The examination was conducted among 58 patients. Patients were diagnosed in the Polyclinic or hospitalized in the Department of Neurology of Warsaw Medical University in Bielański Hospital. The study group included 29 patients suffering from migraine (diagnosed according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 2nd edition) and 29 patients without headaches served as controls. All patients underwent neurological examination and magnetic resonance imaging to identify organic disorders. The blink reflex was tested among all patients in accordance with electrophysiological laboratory standards. Results The latency of the R1 response was significantly shorter among patients with migraine. The latency of R2 and R2’ responses was similar in patients and controls. A significant inverse correlation was observed between latency of R2 and R2’ responses and frequency of migraine attacks. Conclusions The inverse correlation between the frequency of attacks and the latency of R2 and R2’ responses of the blink reflex confirms the abnormal eaxcitability induced by the high frequency of migraine attacks.Wstęp i cel pracy W patofizjologii migreny istotną rolę odgrywają nadpobudliwość jądra rdzeniowego nerwu V i aktywacja układu trójdzielno-naczyniowego. Odruch mrugania pozostaje najbardziej wartościową metodą oceny funkcji nerwu trójdzielnego. Celem pracy jest ocena występowania różnic w badaniu odruchu mrugania u chorych na migrenę w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną osób bez bólów głowy. Materiał i metody Badanie przeprowadzono u 58 osób. Wszyscy pacjenci byli diagnozowani w ramach Przychodni Przyszpitalnej Szpitala Bielańskiego w Warszawie oraz Kliniki Neurologii II WL WUM. Do grupy badanej włączono 29 chorych na migrenę rozpoznaną zgodnie z Międzynarodową Klasyfikacją Bólów Głowy (wydanie II). Do grupy kontrolnej zakwalifikowano 29 osób, u których nie występowały bóle głowy. U wszystkich pacjentów przeprowadzono badanie neurologiczne oraz wykonano rezonans magnetyczny mózgu w celu wykluczenia zmian organicznych w ośrodkowym układzie nerwowym. Badania odruchu mrugania przeprowadzono w Pracowni Elektromiografii i Potencjałów Wywołanych Kliniki Neurologii II WL WUM w Szpitalu Bielańskim zgodnie z obowiązującymi standardami. Wyniki W grupie badanej latencja odpowiedzi R1 była istotnie krótsza w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną. Nie wykazano istotnych różnic pomiędzy latencjami odpowiedzi R2 i R2’ w grupie badanej i kontrolnej. Ponadto wykazano istotne korelacje ujemne między wartością latencji odpowiedzi R2 i R2’ oraz częstością napadów migreny. Wnioski Wykazana ujemna korelacja między częstością napadów i latencją odpowiedzi późnych może świadczyć o nadmiernej pobudliwości jądra rdzeniowego nerwu trójdzielnego indukowanej zwiększoną częstością napadów migreny

Evaluation of activities of daily living in patients with slowly progressive neuromuscular diseases

•SMA3 leading to the biggest limitations in performing.•The most difficult tasks to perform were those in the area of ‘mobility’.•Patients from our study reported similar limitations in activities of daily living

Low-symptomatic skeletal muscle disease in patients with a cardiac disease – Diagnostic approach in skeletal muscle laminopathies

Mild skeletal muscle symptoms might be accompanied with severe cardiac disease, sometimes indicating a serious inherited disorder. Very often it is a cardiologist who refers a patient with cardiomyopathy and/or cardiac arrhythmia and discrete muscle disease for neurological consultation, which helps to establish a proper diagnosis. Here we present three families in which a diagnosis of skeletal muscle laminopathy was made after careful examination of the members, who presented with cardiac arrhythmia and/or heart failure and a mild skeletal muscle disease, which together with positive family history allowed to direct the molecular diagnostics and then provide appropriate treatment and counseling

Nijmegen paediatric CDG rating scale: a novel tool to assess disease progression

Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) are a group of clinically heterogeneous inborn errors of metabolism. At present, treatment is available for only one CDG, but potential treatments for the other CDG are on the horizon. It will be vitally important in clinical trials of such agents to have a clear understanding of both the natural history of CDG and the corresponding burden of disability suffered by patients. To date, no multicentre studies have attempted to document the natural history of CDG. This is in part due to the lack of a reliable assessment tool to score CDG’s diverse clinical spectrum. Based on our earlier experience evaluating disease progression in disorders of oxidative phosphorylation, we developed a practical and semi-quantitative rating scale for children with CDG. The Nijmegen Paediatric CDG Rating Scale (NPCRS) has been validated in 12 children, offering a tool to objectively monitor disease progression. We undertook a successful trial of the NPCRS with a collaboration of nine experienced physicians, using video records of physical and neurological examination of patients. The use of NPCRS can facilitate both longitudinal and natural history studies that will be essential for future interventions

Migraine and Its Association with Hyperactivity of Cell Membranes in the Course of Latent Magnesium Deficiency—Preliminary Study of the Importance of the Latent Tetany Presence in the Migraine Pathogenesis

So far, there is no consistent and convincing theory explaining the pathogenesis of migraines. Vascular disorders, the effect of oxidative stress on neurons, and the contribution of magnesium-calcium deficiencies in triggering cortical depression and abnormal glutaminergic neurotransmission are taken into account. However, there are no reliable publications confirming the role of dietary deficits of magnesium and latent tetany as factors triggering migraine attacks. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of latent magnesium deficiency assessed with the electrophysiological tetany test on the course of migraine. The study included: a group of 35 patients (29 women and six men; in mean age 41 years) with migraine and a control group of 24 (17 women and seven men; in mean age 39 years) healthy volunteers. Migraine diagnosis was based on the International Headache Society criteria, 3rd edition. All patients and controls after full general and neurological examination were subjected to a standard electrophysiological ischemic tetany test. Moreover, the level of magnesium in blood serum was tested and was in the normal range in all patients. Then, the incidence of a positive tetany EMG test results in the migraine group and the results in the subgroups with and without aura were compared to the results in the control group. Moreover, the relationship between clinical markers of spasmophilia and the results of the tetany test was investigated in the migraine group. As well as the relationship between migraine frequency and tetany test results. There was no statistically significant difference in the occurrence of the electrophysiological exponent of spasmophilia between the migraine and control group. Neither correlation between the occurrence of clinical symptoms nor the frequency of migraine attacks and the results of the tetany test was stated (p > 0.05). However, there was an apparent statistical difference between the subgroup of migraine patients with aura in relation to the control group (p < 0.05). The result raises hope to find a trigger for migraine attacks of this clinical form, the more that this factor may turn out to be easy to supplement with dietary supplementation

Antiepileptic drugs in neuropathic pain treatment

Neuropathic pain, beside the nociceptive one, is clinically difficult in terms of a diagnosis as well as the treatment process. The variety of mechanism engaged in its pathogenesis is basics to apply the medicine about different mechanisms of operations. Neuropathic pain result from the damage caused to the pain track above the nociceptors in the peripheral and central nervous systems. Difficulties in neuropathic pain treatment emerge from the process of structural rebuilding within damaged fibres and neighbouring healthy ones. Early interrupt of the pain prevent the structural rebuilding. Antiepileptic drugs, in addition to antidepressants and opioids, are fundamental and often applied group of medications in neuropathic pain treatment of various aetiology. Their efficacy has been well known for a very long time. The medications of older generation as well as the newest ones are equally applied. Carbamazepine is generally used in treatment of neuropathic pain and the best efficacy and recommendations of this medicine is for trigeminal neuralgia. The medications of newer generation, such as gabapentine and pregabaline, appeared to be most effective in neuropathic pain treatment and diabetic neuropathy as well as after herpes zoster. Most antiepileptic drugs, particularly of the newest generation, exert significant efficiency in neuropathic pain treatment. There is lamotrigine, oxcarbazepine and topiramate among them, evaluated in a number of medical reports as helpful in its treatment.Ból neuropatyczny obok bólu receptorowego stanowi trudny problem kliniczny w zakresie diagnostyki i leczenia. Różnorodność mechanizmów biorących udział w patogenezie bólu neuropatycznego jest podstawą do stosowania leków o różnych mechanizmach działania. Ból neuropatyczny powstaje w wyniku uszkodzenia dróg bólu powyżej nocyceptorów zarówno w części obwodowej, jak i ośrodkowej układu nerwowego. Trudności w leczeniu bólu neuropatycznego wynikają przede wszystkim z faktu, iż w czasie jego trwania dochodzi do przebudowy strukturalnej w obrębie nie tylko włókien uszkodzonych, ale także sąsiadujących z nimi włókien nerwowych nieuszkodzonych. Wczesne przerwanie dolegliwości bólowych zapobiega tej przebudowie. Leki przeciwpadaczkowe obok leków przeciwdepresyjnych i opioidów są podstawową i często stosowaną grupą w leczeniu bólu neuropatycznego o różnej etiologii. Ich skuteczność jest znana od dawna. Stosowane są zatem zarówno leki starszej generacji, jak i te najnowsze. Karbamazepina jest lekiem powszechnie stosowanym w leczeniu bólu neuropatycznego. Największą skuteczność osiąga w przypadku neuralgii nerwu trójdzielnego i jest rekomendowana do stosowania w tego typu bólach. Leki nowszej generacji, takie jak gabapentyna i pregabalina, okazały się najskuteczniejsze w leczeniu bólu neuropatycznego w przebiegu neuropatii cukrzycowej, jak również po półpaścu. Większość leków przeciwpadaczkowych, szczególnie tych najnowszych, wykazuje znaczącą skuteczność w leczeniu bólu neuropatycznego. Wśród nich lamotrygina, okskarbazepina, topiramat są w wielu doniesieniach oceniane jako pomocne w jego terapii

Magnesium as an Important Factor in the Pathogenesis and Treatment of Migraine—From Theory to Practice

So far, no coherent and convincing theory has been developed to fully explain the pathogenesis of migraine, although many researchers and experts emphasize its association with spreading cortical depression, oxidative stress, vascular changes, nervous excitement, neurotransmitter release, and electrolyte disturbances. The contribution of magnesium deficiency to the induction of cortical depression or abnormal glutamatergic neurotransmission is a likely mechanism of the magnesium–migraine relationship. Hence, there is interest in various methods of assessing magnesium ion deficiency and attempts to study the relationship of its intra- and extracellular levels with the induction of migraine attacks. At the same time, many clinicians believe that magnesium supplementation in the right dose and form can be a treatment to prevent migraine attacks, especially in those patients who have identified contraindications to standard medications or their different preferences. However, there are no reliable publications confirming the role of magnesium deficiency in the diet as a factor causing migraine attacks. It also seems interesting to deepen the research on the administration of high doses of magnesium intravenously during migraine attacks. The aim of the study was to discuss the probable mechanisms of correlation of magnesium deficiency with migraine, as well as to present the current clinical proposals for the use of various magnesium preparations in complementary or substitute pharmacotherapy of migraine. The summary of the results of research and clinical observations to date gives hope of finding a trigger for migraine attacks (especially migraine with aura), which may turn out to be easy to diagnose and eliminate with pharmacological and dietary supplementation