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Biomedical subjects

F Frediani

Publications and source records attributed to F Frediani.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Dexamethasone suppression test, melatonin and TRH-test in cluster headache.

The origin of Cluster Headache (CH) is still unknown. The periodicty and presence of symptoms due to both sympathetic and parasympathetic activity suggest the involvement of central nervous system structures, particularly the hypothalamus. To investigate hypothalamic involvement in CH, we employed a neuroendocrinological approach. We observed a normal dexamethasone suppression test (DST) in all patients, increased cortisol plasma levels in remission patients at 8.00am before and at the end of the DST, while only in CH patients during cluster period did we find a reduced TSH response to TRH and a reduced night-time melatonin peak. The neuroendocrinological derangements found in CH may be consistent with hypothalamic involvement.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Dihydroergokryptine versus dihydroergotamine in migraine prophylaxis: a double-blind clinical trial.

Dihydroergokryptine has been evaluated in the prophylaxis of headache attacks in patients with migraine without aura. The study was controlled vs dihydroergotamine with a double-blind crossover design. After a 1-month run-in period, 30 patients were randomized into two groups and submitted to 4 months treatment with dihydroergokryptine 10 mg b.i.d. or dihydroergotamine (controlled release) 5 mg b.i.d. The treatment was repeated in crossover after 2 months washout. The clinical patients' evaluation was determined by monthly Pain Total Index recording, headache days/month and analgesic consumption. The patients were considered responsible when Pain Total Index decreased by 50% or more in 1 or more months of each treatment period; otherwise the patients were considered unresponsive. The response rate to dihydroergokryptine was 66% while 48% of cases were responsive to dihydroergotamine. The response rate to both treatments was 41%, while 26% did not respond to either treatment. Seven cases unresponsive to dihydroergotamine responded positively to dihydroergokryptine while two cases only, resistant to dihydroergokryptine, responded positively to dihydroergotamine. Three cases dropped out during treatment with dihydroergotamine due to gastric pain and nausea, while they did not show any side effects during dihydroergokryptine therapy. During treatment with dihydroergokryptine there was one case of skin rash which disappeared after drug withdrawal. In conclusion, dihydroergokryptine appears to be an effective drug for the prophylaxis of migraine attacks.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

A therapeutic alternative for tension headache in children: treatment and 1-year follow-up results.

Ten young subjects, ranging in age from 12 to 15 years, suffering from tension headache were treated by electromyographic biofeedback (EMG-BFB) twice a week for 12 sessions. The Pain Total Index (PTI) was recorded every month from the beginning to the end of the treatment. At the end of the treatment the PTI decreased significantly in all our patients and, at the same time, the muscular tension values also decreased. This result supports the hypothesis of a correlation between clinical symptom and muscular tension level. We saw our patients for follow-up sessions, and the clinical improvement was confirmed to 1 year from the completion of the treatment; however, the muscular tension values were increased with respect to the last-session values.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Is nimodipine useful in migraine prophylaxis? Further considerations.

Nimodipine is one of the most discussed calcium antagonists used in cerebrovascular diseases and, recently, in migraine prophylaxis. Its specificity in preventing cerebral arterial constriction has been invoked to explain nimodipine's efficacy in migraine. The discovery of neuronal receptors specific for dihydropyridines, however, favours a mechanism of action for nimodipine that is not exclusively vascular. This is in accordance with a view of migraine pathogenesis which implicates a primary neuronal event as the basis of the vascular changes observed in migraine patients.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗
PubMed1986

Vasculitic neuropathy in panarteritis nodosa: clinical and ultrastructural findings.

Clinical involvement of the peripheral nervous system in panarteritis nodosa is common, but the histological aspects are little known. We describe the sural nerve, muscle and skin biopsy findings in a patient with panarteritis nodosa, affected by mononeuritis multiplex. The data are compared to those reported in other types of vasculitis neuropathy.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Cryptococcal meningoencephalitis. Case report and review of Italian literature.

A case of cryptococcal meningoencephalitis, as presented by a hypertensive hydrocephalus, is described. To our knowledge, this is the 24th case described in Italy since 1953. The diagnosis was made with ventricular fluid examination: the patient was successfully treated with amphotericin B and 5-fluorocytosine, thus avoiding the risks of surgical treatment of hydrocephalus. Early diagnosis and proper therapy are necessary in order to decrease the high lethality of cryptococcosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Clinical usefulness of a dopaminergic agonist in headache diagnosis.

The dopaminergic system seems to be involved in pain modulation. In a 1983 publication, the administration of a dopaminergic agonist has been proposed as a test able to distinguish migraine from other cephalalgia. In the present study, 123 people were tested, 102 of them being migraine patients and the others being normal subjects. The test showed highly specificity for headache patients when compared to normal subjects, and was highly specific for migraine patients when compared to headache patients. Data are discussed considering the clinical diagnostic value, pathophysiological and therapeutic aspects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Naloxone in cerebral ischemia: preliminary data.

The effect of the opiate antagonist naloxone was evaluated in 11 unselected patients with cerebral ischemia. Naloxone reversed neurological deficits in the 4 patients with less evident signs of vascular damage.

Adult↗