It has been suggested that malingering should be suspected in patients suffering from dizziness or imbalance and who had a potential gain associated with insurance and worker's compensation claims. This study aimed to assess and compare the prevalence of aphysiologic performance on computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) in patients with the ...

OBJECTIVES: Patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) experience long-term chronic liver diseases plus an acute liver function decompensation. This study aimed to determine whether psychological symptoms in patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related ACLF differ from those with other chronic liver diseases and to identify which factors could predict psychological ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Mitral valve thickness is used as a criterion to distinguish the classical from the non-classical form of mitral valve prolapse (MVP). Classical form of MVP has been associated with higher risk of mitral regurgitation (MR) and concomitant complications. We sought to determine the relation of mitral valve morphology ...

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Portal vein thrombosis (PVT) is a frequent event in patients with cirrhosis; it can be treated with anticoagulants, but there is limited data regarding safety and efficacy of this approach. We evaluated this therapy in a large series of patients with cirrhosis and non-neoplastic PVT. METHODS: We ...

To evaluate (1) whether right ventricular (RV) dysfunction, evaluated using tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) is associated with a worse outcome in patients with the Eisenmenger syndrome, (2) which variables are related to RV dysfunction, and (3) whether differences exist among simple pretricuspid, simple post-tricuspid, and combined shunt lesions. ...

INTRODUCTION: Discussion on aortic valve degenerative processes is still lasting. Markers of calcification and atherosclerosis may allow the background of these processes to be distinguished. OBJECTIVES: to assess the biochemical markers of the calcification and atherosclerotis in patients with degenerative aortic stenosis (AS) in relation to the aortic valve calcium ...

The fear-avoidance model postulates that in chronic low back pain (CLBP) a fear of movement is acquired in the acute phase, which leads to subsequent avoidance of physical activity and contributes to the pain syndrome's becoming chronic. In the present event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study of the neural ...

Thrombosis-related edema and lymphedema are two principal types of lower extremity edema results from radiotherapy alone or chemoradiotherapy for patients with cervical cancer. To characterize differences between them, a retrospective study was performed. We collected data including age, race, body weight, FIGO stage, histology type, platelet count, haemoglobin, time of ...

BACKGROUND: Underreporting of adverse drug reactions is common but has been rarely studied in Parkinson's disease (PD). OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence of adverse events (AEs) in relation to antiparkinsonian drugs in PD patients using two different data collection methods: patient's spontaneous reporting versus a predefined investigator-driven structured interview. Secondary ...

Fibrin-related markers (FRMs) such as fibrin and fibrinogen degradation products (FDPs), <scp>d</scp>-dimer, and soluble fibrin monomer complex (SFMC) were prospectively evaluated in 522 patients using the overt disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) diagnostic criteria. The differences in all FRMs between the DIC group and the non-DIC group, and those between the ...

: Radiologic study of scoliosis in pectus excavatum patients. : To determine the relation between pectus excavatum deformity and adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). : AIS may be related to other whole body deformities, but few reports have addressed the relation between chest deformity and scoliosis. : A total of 248 ...

This study was designed to evaluate the frequency, morphological patterns, sequential changes, and clinical significance of venous thrombosis after radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A total of 1379 RFAs performed in 1046 patients with HCC (mean tumor size, 1.93 cm) were surveyed. We retrospectively reviewed all radiologic reports ...

We conducted a retrospective analysis of the records of 1348 patients regularly treated at the headache clinic of Department of Neurology of Santa Casa de São Paulo, Brazil. Sixty-two patients reported history of daily and persistent headache. From the 62 patients selected, only 21 (group 1) could be diagnosed with ...

To evaluate the clinical significance of oxidative stress markers in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Sixty-four consecutive patients who were admitted to Kagoshima University Medical and Dental Hospital were enrolled in this retrospective study. All patients had chronic liver disease (CLD) due to infection with HCV. ...

Cerebral microbleeds (MBs) may relate to amyloid in dementia. We selected 26 probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients with MBs, 26 age- and sex-matched AD patients without MBs, 11 vascular dementia (VaD) patients, and 22 patients with subjective complaints. We measured amyloid beta 1-42 (Aβ42) and 1-40 (Aβ40) in cerebrospinal fluid ...

BACKGROUND: Syncope in Brugada syndrome (BS) patients is usually associated with ventricular tachyarrhythmia, but some episodes of syncope can be related to autonomic disorders. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of syncope to differentiate high-risk syncope episodes from low-risk events in patients with BS. METHODS: ...

INTRODUCTION: FacioScapuloHumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD), a disease linked to a heterozygous D4Z4 deletion on chromosome 4q35, typically starts with shoulder-girdle and facial muscle involvement. Atypical presentations have occasionally been reported, but their frequency has still not been defined. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We studied the occurrence rate of FSHD with atypical ...

Background: It is difficult to predict the risk of falling, especially in patients with good motor ability, and the mechanisms underlying the relation between gait patterns and falling in Parkinson's disease (PD) remain unclear. We investigated factors related to falling, including walking speed and time, in patients with Hoehn-Yahr stage ...

Study Type - Therapy (case series) Level of Evidence 4 What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? It has been proposed that there is a significant relation between varicocoele and saphenofemoral reflux. Our results show that there is no statistically significant relation between varicocoele and saphenofemoral reflux. ...

BACKGROUND: The increased occurrence of obstetric complications (OCs) in patients with schizophrenia suggests that alterations in neurodevelopment may be of importance to the aetiology of the illness. Abnormal cortical folding may reflect subtle deviation from normal neurodevelopment during the foetal or neonatal period. In the present study, we hypothesized that ...

Objective: To investigate the effect of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in Kuwaiti patients with primary knee osteoarthritis (OA) and to assess its relation with radiological grading and functional status. Subjects and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 25(OH)D was measured using radioimmunoassay in 99 patients [90 women and 9 men; mean age ...

Purpose:  To investigate the incidence and duration of transient hyperammonemia in seizures and to verify the significant confounders related to transient hyperammonemia in seizures. Methods:  One hundred twenty-one noncirrhotic adult patients with seizures admitted to the emergency department were enrolled in the study. Laboratory examination was performed, including plasma ammonia ...

Hyperthyroidism is a questionable risk factor for thromboembolism among atrial fibrillation patients. Objective:  To correlate clinical risk factors for thromboembolism from a group of patients with atrial fibrillation related to hyperthyroidism with transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) markers of a thrombogenic milieu. Design:  Clinical risk factors for thromboembolism, thyroid hormonal status, time ...

Catheter Ablation in Ebstein's Anomaly. Introduction: In patients with Ebstein's anomaly (EA) arrhythmias are frequently encountered. Although most arrhythmias can be targeted with catheter ablation, specific issues render the procedure more challenging in EA. This study examines the mechanisms of the different arrhythmias related to EA and the outcome after ...

Several phenotypes are described in COPD. To assess if COPD patients with Hoover's sign (HS) belong to a particular phenotype. All consecutive COPD patients with varying degree of airflow obstruction that came for lung function testing in one university hospital were prospectively assessed, using clinical and magnetometer detection of HS, ...

ABSTRACT: Study Design: Retrospective study.Objective: This study addressed in patients with KFS, the role of congenitally fused cervical patterns, risk factors, and cervical symptoms associated with cervical scoliosis.Summary of Background Data: Klippel-Feil Syndrome (KFS) is an uncommon condition, characterized as improper segmentation of one or more cervical spine segments with ...

Purpose:  Sleep-related complex motor seizures are a common feature of nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy. Nevertheless, recent studies also suggest that sleep-related hypermotor seizures can originate in the insula. The present study describes the electroclinical features of eight drug-resistant epileptic patients with insular-opercular seizures manifesting with nocturnal complex motor seizures. Methods:  ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine small artery elasticity (SAE) in patients with longstanding rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in comparison to healthy controls, and to investigate its relation to markers of endothelial cell activation, disease activity, joint damage, and the presence of atherosclerosis. METHODS: Forty-nine patients with RA and 50 age- and sex-matched healthy ...

BACKGROUND: Voriconazole is a triazole agent with excellent antifungal activity against Aspergillus species. However, despite its potential advantages, the occurrence of unpredictable toxicities might be critical in immunocompromised patients. The aim of this study was to analyze risk factors for voriconazole-related severe adverse events (SAEs). METHODS: This prospective observational study ...

Orthostatic headache related to spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak (CSF) appears within 2 h of sitting or standing in most patients. However, longer delays to headache onset have been observed, including some patients who have headaches only in the afternoon. The objective of this study is to describe second-half-of-the-day headache as a ...

Dystonia is a central motor processing neurological disorder characterized by abnormal, often action-induced, involuntary movements or uncontrolled spasms. To compare patients with the diagnoses of focal and segmental adductor laryngeal dystonia at the Neurolarynx Outpatient Clinic of the Federal University of São Paulo. A clinical retrospective study of data collected ...

This article describes the clinical case of a patient, a 13-year-old boy, in whom the appearance of patent nasopalatine ducts was noted after having a rapid maxillary expansion performed. To confirm this finding, inspection and radiographic examination were performed in which gutta-percha cones were used as contrast. The patient related ...

To examine the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of hepatitis B virus (HBV) related liver failure in patients in China. This study was conducted with a retrospective design to examine 1066 patients with HBV-related liver failure in the southwest of China. There were more male than female patients. Young and middle-aged ...

Introduction: We analyzed renal histologic and immunohistologic findings in children with nephrotic syndrome (NS) who did (n=5) or did not (n=17) develop cyclosporine A (CyA) nephropathy despite appropriately low serum CyA concentrations being maintained over 2 years. Methods: To discriminate embryonic-type from mature glomeruli, we performed staining for type IV ...

Capillary necrosis is frequently encountered in most forms of proliferative glomerulonephritis, and varies in severity from only occasional finding to severe form of glomerular vasculitis. We report a patient who presented with features of acute glomerulonephritis. Kidney biopsy showed crescents in 30% of the glomeruli, diffuse mesangial expansion and hypercellularity ...

Background and aims Balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (B-RTO) is an effective treatment for gastric varices (GVx) as well as hepatic encephalopathy. The aim of this study was to examine the changes of the hepatic vein pressure gradient (HVPG) after B-RTO and determine the relation between the changes of HVPG and ...

Background: Functional neuroimaging studies on schizophrenia have suggested abnormal task-related functional connectivity in patients with schizophrenia who have auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs). However, little is known about intrinsic functional connectivity in these patients. Methods: Between January 2009 and February 2010, we studied patients with schizophrenia who had persistent and treatment-refractory ...

BACKGROUND: Prediction of esophageal varices in cirrhotic patients by noninvasive methods is still unsatisfactory. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the accuracy of an artificial neural network (ANN) in predicting varices in patients with HBV related cirrhosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: An ANN was constructed with data taken from 197 patients with HBV related ...

OBJECT: Simultaneous EEG-fMRI recordings allow the identification of haemodynamic changes induced by neuronal activity during ictal or interictal epileptiform events (IEDs). We evaluated the reproducibility of continuous EEG-fMRI (cEEG-fMRI) in patients with focal epilepsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We studied 15 patients with focal epilepsy (8 cryptogenic and 7 symptomatic) and ...

Abstract Objective. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of radical cystectomy and different forms of urinary diversion on female sexual function. Material and methods. Seventy-three consecutive patients were included in the study. The mean age was 52.3 ± 6.5 years. All of them had undergone non-nerve-sparing ...

Parkinson's disease (PD) is surprisingly heterogeneous: some patients have a prominent resting tremor, while others never develop this symptom. Here we investigate whether the functional organization of the voluntary motor system differs between PD patients with and without resting tremor, and whether these differences relate to the cerebral circuit producing ...

Multiple sclerosis (MS) that causes patients to require assistance for ambulation (Expanded Disability Status Scale [EDSS] ≥6) within 5 years from symptom onset is generally termed malignant. Malignant status can be transient (TM) or sustained until year 5 (SM). We studied the incidence, predictors, and demographic and clinical characteristics of ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Event-related potentials (ERPs) may be used as a highly sensitive way of detecting subtle degrees of cognitive dysfunction. On the other hand, impairment of cognitive skills is increasingly recognised as a hallmark of patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS). We sought to determine the psychophysiological pattern of information ...

There are individuals who have a progressive language deficit without presenting cognitive deficits in other areas. One of the diseases related to this presentation is primary progressive aphasia (PPA). Identify by means of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and measurements of cortical volume, brain areas that lead to dysphasia when presenting ...

Abstract. Fecal samples from 444 Danish patients presenting with acute diarrhea were tested for Blastocystis and positive samples were subtyped to investigate the prevalence and subtype distribution of Blastocystis in this patient group. A total of 25 patients (5.6%) were positive, and 19 of these patients (76.0%) were positive for ...

Abstract This study was designed to demonstrate the frequency of sensitivity to European standard patch test allergens in patients with isolated itching of the external auditory canal (EAC). A prospective case-control study. Fifty-six female patients with the complaint of recurrent EAC itching and 30 female controls without pruritis of the ...

OBJECTIVES: Headache is an interesting issue in Behçet's disease (BD). This study aimed to investigate if headache or a special type of headache was correlated with silent neurologic involvement in BD patients without any neurologic sign. METHODS: The study was performed on 120 BD patients (30 without headache, 30 with ...

An association between congenital complete atrioventricular block (cCAVB) and aortic dilation during childhood has recently been reported. We sought to further explore this relation with particular emphasis on the natural history of aortic abnormalities over time. The relation of maternal anti-Ro/La antibody status to the aortic size of children affected ...

OBJECTIVE: To explore the mechanism of Etanercept in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), we investigated whether the Th1/Th2 and Th17/regulatory T cells (Treg) imbalance could be reversed by Etanercept and whether the reversal was related to the improvement of clinical indications. METHODS: We conducted a 12-week study in 40 ...

BACKGROUND: Several studies have investigated gender-related differences in atrial fibrillation (AF), but limited data are available in relation to gender-related differences in presentation, treatment and long-term outcomes of patients with first-diagnosed AF and structurally normal heart. OBJECTIVE: To compare gender-related clinical characteristics, presentation, treatment and long-term outcomes in a cohort ...