Actinomycosis of the central nervous system: a rare complication of cervicofacial actinomycosis

Central nervous system actinomycosis is a rare but treatable chronic suppurative bacterial infection. The case of a young immunocompetent male with actinomycosis of the CNS is presented. The abscess originated from a primary cervico-facial infection and was located in the left parasellar region. After excision of the mass, that showed Actinomyces colonies, the patient was treated with intravenous Penicillin for 42 days followed by oral administration of the drug for 30 days. After surgery the patient was left with mild sequelae that had improved by the last follow-up, 7 months later. A new CT scan at that time revealed no residual disease or recurrence. The early diagnosis of cerebral actinomycosis relies essentially on a clinical suspicion. Hence it is imperative to be aware of the natural history of this infection and its various modes of presentation.A actinomicose do sistema nervoso central (SNC) é afecção rara, caracterizada pela formação de abscesso único e de evolução crônica. Os autores descrevem o caso de um paciente jovem, imunocompetente, com actinomicose cerebral oriunda de foco primário cervicofacial, submetido a ressecção cirúrgica e antibioticoterapia. Ressalta-se a importância do conhecimento da entidade e de suas principais formas de acometimento, como a base do diagnóstico precoce dessa enfermidade potencialmente curável e de bom prognóstico.Escola Paulista de MedicinaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL

Intravenous Grafts of Human Amniotic Fluid-Derived Stem Cells Reduce Behavioral Deficits in Experimental Ischemic Stroke

Amniotic fluid has been investigated as new cell source for stem cells in the development of future cell-based transplantation. This study reports isolation of viable human amniotic fluid-derived stem cells, labeled with multimodal iron oxide nanoparticles, and its effect on focal cerebral ischemia–reperfusion injury in Wistar rats. Middle cerebral artery occlusion of 60 min followed by reperfusion for 1 h, 6 h, and 24 h was employed in the present study to produce ischemia and reperfusion-induced cerebral injury in rats. Tests were employed to assess the functional outcome of the sensorimotor center activity in the brain, through a set of modified neurological severity scores used to assess motor and exploratory capacity 24 h, 14, and 28 days after receiving cellular therapy via tail vein. In our animal model of stroke, transplanted cells migrated to the ischemic focus, infarct volume decreased, and motor deficits improved. Therefore, we concluded that these cells appear to have beneficial effects on the ischemic brain, possibly based on their ability to enhance endogenous repair mechanisms

Dados normativos para o teste de fluência verbal categoria animais em nosso meio Normative data: category verbal fluency

OBJETIVOS: Avaliar o desempenho na fluência verbal em nossa população e verificar a influência da idade e escolaridade. MÉTODOS: Foram entrevistados 336 indivíduos sem queixas neurológicas ou psiquiátricas, através do Mini-Exame do Estado Mental (MEM) e geração de animais em um minuto. Para efeito comparativo e para verificação dos níveis de corte, foram examinados 65 indivíduos com quadro de perda cognitiva, acompanhados no ambulatório de Neurologia do Comportamento da EPM. RESULTADOS: Na população "normal" tivemos média de 13,84 animais por minuto. Para os grupos de escolaridade: 11,92, para analfabetos; 12,82, para indivíduos com até 4 anos incompletos; 13,45, para os de 4 a 8 anos incompletos; 15,88 para os com 8 ou mais anos de escolaridade. Houve diferença significante entre eles (p= 0,0001). Para os grupos etários, tivemos médias de: 13,79, para aqueles com idade inferior a 65 anos; 13.92 para os com idade igual ou superior a 65 anos (sem diferença estatística). Determinamos para esses grupos dois níveis de corte: 9 para indivíduos com até 8 anos de escolaridade com sensibilidade de 75 % para analfabetos, 100 % para baixa escolaridade, 87 % para média escolaridade; e especificidade de 79 % para analfabetos, 84 % para baixa escolaridade, 88 % para média escolaridade. Para o grupo de alta escolaridade o escore de corte foi de 13, com sensibilidade de 86 % e especificidade de 67 %. CONCLUSÃO: Devemos utilizar níveis diferenciados de corte no teste de fluência verbal, em nosso meio, considerando os efeitos da escolaridade sobre o desempenho neste teste.<br>OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the performance on verbal fluency (VF) in our population in a Brazilian sample checking the influence of age and literacy. METHODS: 336 people without neurological or psychiatric complaints evaluated through Mini-Mental State Examination and VF (animals). For comparison, and to determine cut-off points, 65 people with cognitive loss followed at our clinic were also evaluated. RESULTS: We found a mean of 13.8 animals in 1 minute, with the following distribution: illiterates, 11.9; up 4 years of education, 12.8; 4 to 7 years, 13.4; 8 years or more, 15.8 (p= 0.0001). In relation to age the means were: up to 64 years, 13.7; 65 years or more, 13.9. There was no difference between the two groups. The cut-off points were 9 for people under 8 years of education with a sensitivity of 75% for illiterates, 100% for low educational level (up 4 years),and 87% for middle level (4 to 7 years). The specificity was respectively 79%, 84%, and 88%. For the high educational level the mean was 13 with a sensitivity of 86% and specificity of 67%. CONCLUSIONS: In the VF (animals) there is a significant influence of schooling and different cut-off points should be used