Targeted Temperature Management in Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains an important health problem worldwide. Pathophysiology of TBI has been intensively investigated. Many novel theories related with pathophysiology of TBI have been regularly proposed. Targeted temperature management (TTM), previously known as therapeutic hypothermia, has a well-established benefit for application as neuroprotective therapy and intracranial pressure (ICP) control. With the novel automatic feedback machine, application of TTM in clinical practice becomes much feasible and safe. Many pre-clinical trials of TTM in models with TBI demonstrated usefulness in multiple aspects. The successful story of TTM in patients with restore of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) after cardiac arrest is a good example for bench to bedside. In the past decade, many clinical trials of TTM in patients with TBI have been conducted with the hope to be another successful study

Prognostication in Post-Cardiac Arrest Patients

After resuscitation from cardiac arrest, a combination of the complex pathophysiologic process, known as post-cardiac arrest syndrome (PCAS), is attributed to multiple organ damage. Global ischemic cascade occurs in the brain due to generalized ischemia during cardiac arrest and the reperfusion process after the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), leading to hypoxic/ ischemic brain injury. Targeted temperature management (TTM) is a well-known neuroprotective therapy for ischemic/hypoxic brain injury. This global brain injury is a significant cause of death in PCAS. The implementation of TTM for PCAS leads to a reduction in mortality and better clinical outcomes among survivors. Prognostication is an essential part of post-resuscitation care. Before the TTM era, physicians relied on the algorithm for prognostication in comatose patients released by the American Academy of Neurology in 2006. However, TTM also announced more significant uncertainty during prognostication. During this TTM era, prognostication should not rely on just a solitary parameter. The trend of prognostication turns into a multimodal strategy integrating physical examination with supplementary methods, consisting of electrophysiology such as somatosensory evoked potential (SSEP) and electroencephalography (EEG), blood biomarkers, particularly serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and neuro-radiography including brain imaging with CT/MRI, to enhance prognostic accuracy

CHInese medicine NeuroAiD efficacy on stroke recovery - Extension study (CHIMES-E): A multicenter study of long-term efficacy

© 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel. Background: The CHInese Medicine NeuroAiD Efficacy on Stroke recovery (CHIMES) study was an international randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial of MLC601 (NeuroAiD) in subjects with cerebral infarction of intermediate severity within 72 h. CHIMES-E (Extension) aimed at evaluating the effects of the initial 3-month treatment with MLC601 on long-term outcome for up to 2 years. Methods: All subjects randomized in CHIMES were eligible for CHIMES-E. Inclusion criteria for CHIMES were age ≥18, baseline National Institute of Health Stroke Scale of 6-14, and pre-stroke modified Rankin Scale (mRS) ≤1. Initial CHIMES treatment allocation blinding was maintained, although no further study treatment was provided in CHIMES-E. Subjects received standard care and rehabilitation as prescribed by the treating physician. mRS, Barthel Index (BI), and occurrence of medical events were ascertained at months 6, 12, 18, and 24. The primary outcome was mRS at 24 months. Secondary outcomes were mRS and BI at other time points. Results: CHIMES-E included 880 subjects (mean age 61.8 ± 11.3; 36% women). Adjusted OR for mRS ordinal analysis was 1.08 (95% CI 0.85-1.37, p = 0.543) and mRS dichotomy ≤1 was 1.29 (95% CI 0.96-1.74, p = 0.093) at 24 months. However, the treatment effect was significantly in favor of MLC601 for mRS dichotomy ≤1 at 6 months (OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.11-2.01, p = 0.008), 12 months (OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.05-1.90, p = 0.023), and 18 months (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.01-1.83, p = 0.045), and for BI dichotomy ≥95 at 6 months (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.14-2.10, p = 0.005) but not at other time points. Subgroup analyses showed no treatment heterogeneity. Rates of death and occurrence of vascular and other medical events were similar between groups. Conclusions: While the benefits of a 3-month treatment with MLC601 did not reach statistical significance for the primary endpoint at 2 years, the odds of functional independence defined as mRS ≤1 was significantly increased at 6 months and persisted up to 18 months after a stroke.Link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Medical Management in Moyamoya Disease

Medical treatment seems to be not entirely helpful in the treatment of Moyamoya disease. No evidence supports the benefits of any drug treatment in Moyamoya disease. The ischemic or hemorrhagic event in Moyamoya disease is not preventable with any medical treatment. However, most of the physicians still prescribe the antithrombotic drug for Moyamoya patients with an ischemic event. Moreover, the standard guidelines recommend administering antithrombotic medications to treat Moyamoya with the ischemic event, even the risk of hemorrhagic complication. Antihypertensive drugs are routinely prescribed in Moyamoya patients with or without elevated blood pressure. A literature review about medical treatment in Moyamoya disease should help determine its use in this pathologic condition

Efficacy of High-Dose and Low-Dose Simvastatin on Vascular Oxidative Stress and Neurological Outcomes in Patient with Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Parallel, Controlled Trial

Backgrounds. Stroke is the leading cause of death and long-term disability. Oxidative stress is elevated during occurrence of acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Soluble LOX-1 (sLOX-1) and NO are used as biomarkers for vascular oxidative stress that can reflect stabilization of atherosclerotic plaque. Previous study showed that simvastatin can reduce oxidative stress and LOX-1 expression. Objectives. To evaluate neurological outcomes and serum sLOX-1 and NO levels in patients with AIS treatment with low dose 10 mg/day and high dose 40 mg/day of simvastatin. Methods. 65 patients with AIS within 24 hours after onset were randomized to treatment with simvastatin 10 mg/day or 40 mg/day for 90 days. Personal data and past history of all patients were recorded at baseline. The blood chemistries were measured by standard laboratory techniques. Serum sLOX-1 and NO levels and neurological outcomes including NIHSS, mRS, and Barthel index were tested at baseline and Day 90 after simvastatin therapy. Results. Baseline characteristics were not significantly different in both groups except history of hypertension. Serum sLOX-1 and NO levels significantly reduce in both groups (sLOX-1 = 1.19±0.47 and 0.98±0.37 ng/ml; NO = 49.28±7.21 and 46.59±9.36 μmol/l) in 10 mg/day and 40 mg/day simvastatin groups, respectively. Neurological outcomes including NIHSS, mRS, and Barthel index significantly improve in both groups. However, no difference in NO level and neurological outcomes was found at 90 days after treatment as compared between low dose 10 mg/day and high dose 40 mg/day of simvastatin. Conclusion. High-dose simvastatin might be helpful to reduce serum sLOX-1. But no difference in clinical outcomes was found between high- and low-dose simvastatin. Further more intensive clinical trial is needed to confirm the appropriate dosage of simvastatin in patients with acute ischemic stroke. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03402204

Wernicke’s encephalopathy and central pontine myelinolysis in hyperemesis gravidarum

A pregnant woman, who had been suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, presented with alteration of consciousness, ocular nystagmus and ataxia. Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the brain showed typical findings of Wernicke’s encephalopathy and central pontine myelinolysis. The clinical features responded dramatically to thiamine supplementation

Comparison of ANN and ANFIS Models for AF Diagnosis Using RR Irregularities

Classification of normal sinus rhythm (NSR), paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF), and persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) is crucial in order to diagnose and effectively plan treatment for patients. Current classification models were primarily developed by electrocardiogram (ECG) signal databases, which may be unsuitable for local patients. Therefore, this research collected ECG signals from 60 local Thai patients (age 52.53 ± 23.92) to create a classification model. The coefficient of variance (CV), the median absolute deviation (MAD), and the root mean square of the successive differences (RMSSD) are ordinary feature variables of RR irregularities used by existing models. The square of average variation (SAV) is a newly proposed feature that extracts from the irregularity of RR intervals. All variables were found to be statistically different using ANOVA tests and Tukey’s method with a p-value less than 0.05. The methods of artificial neural network (ANN) and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) were also tested and compared to find the best classification model. Finally, SAV showed the best performance using the ANFIS model with trapezoidal membership function, having the highest system accuracy (ACC) at 89.33%, sensitivity (SE), specificity (SP), and positive predictivity (PPR) for NSR at 100.00%, 94.00%, and 89.29%, PAF at 88.00%, 90.57%, and 81.48%, and AF at 80.00%, 96.00%, and 90.91%, respectively