Articles related to Neurology

Although the relationship between preceding viral illness and subsequent Guillain-Barre isn’t proven, it is a commonly observed pattern. The severity of GBS ranges from mild sensory disturbances to life-threatening loss of function requiring intubation.

A 63-year-old man is seen in the ER for new onset confusion. He has been taking codeine-guaifenesin as directed for a URI. Respirations are shallow and the rate is 10/min. Pupils are miotic and the patient is somnolent. Exam and vitals are otherwise normal. The confusion resolves with administration of naloxone. Why did this patient most likely have the drug reaction?

For the treatment of psychosis in schizophrenia, may an oral molecule constitute a new class of psychotropic drug with a non-D2-receptor binding mode of action? The purpose of a recent study was to answer that question, which Dr. Matt Birnholz delves into in this audio abstract.

SEP-363856, a non-D2-receptor binding antipsychotic, reduced the PANSS total score from baseline more than the placebo in this 4-week experiment comprising individuals with acute exacerbations of schizophrenia. Longer and larger trials are required to confirm SEP-363856’s effects and side effects as well as its efficacy in comparison to other medications currently used to treat schizophrenia patients.

The authors in this paper wanted to determine if, on the basis of basic clinical criteria, the stiff limb syndrome can be distinguished from the stiff man syndrome and progressive encephalomyelitis with rigidity, and whether this distinction has any bearing on the condition’s origin, course of treatment, or prognosis.

This prospective cohort study measured cardiac arrhythmias in patients with chronic drug-resistant epilepsy. Using subcutaneous cardiac monitors programmed to record episodes of tachycardia, bradycardia, or asystole ≥3 seconds, 90% of study patients had episodes of sustained tachycardia, 25% had bradycardia and nearly 10% had asystole.