PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

F Lacruz

Publications and source records attributed to F Lacruz.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Acute carotid obliteration: a new vascular manifestation in POEMS syndrome.

The case of a 65-year-old woman with polyneuropathy, organomegaly, skin changes and monoclonal gammopathy of IgG-lambda type is described. This patient developed an acute carotid obliteration during oral anticoagulation and despite absence of vascular risk factors. Macroangiopathy has been described as a rare systemic manifestation of POEMS syndrome (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal spike and skin changes), affecting the coronary and lower limbs arteries. To our knowledge, this is the second case of POEMS syndrome with a cerebrovascular manifestation.

Anticoagulants↗
PubMed2003

[Internal carotid stenosis and giant cell arteritis].

We report on the case of a 69-year-old man admitted with a transient ischemic attack preceded by a two months history of severe headache. Giant cell arteritis was diagnosed by means of temporal artery biopsy. Angiography showed an intra- and extracranial stenosis of the left internal carotid artery. The possible relationship between this stenosis and vasculitis is discussed and stroke as a clinical manifestation of the giant cell arteritis is reviewed.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

[Variation of Mini-Mental-State examination scores due to age and educational level. Normalized data in the population over 70 years of age in Pamplona].

The Mini-Mental-State Examination (MMSE) is widely used as a screening tool for dementia in epidemiological studies. Its applicability in population-based studies is nevertheless limited by its low specificity. The effect of age and educational level have been usually ignored when cut-off scores have been selected. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of age and educational level on the MMSE scores in a representative sample of subjects older than 70 and provide adjusted normalised data according to these two variables, after excluding subjects with dementia or cognitive decline. Population-based, cross-sectional and longitudinal study of a representative cohort of 1367 subjects older than 70. All subjects with suspected dementia or cognitive decline received a neurological evaluation where clinical and etiological diagnosis were established. Normal MMSE scores, as defined by the 10th percentile, varied significantly across age and educational level groups. Exclusion of demented or cognitively declined patients from the reference population reduced the variability and "range of normality", but this remained excessively high in the older and less educated groups. The use of different cut-off points for each age and educational level groups may improve the specificity and applicability of the MMSE in population-based epidemiological studies. However, the wide amplitude of the range of normality suggests that different approaches, other than this vibariate analysis, may prove more adequate in the selection of cut-off scores for the MMSE.

Age Distribution↗
PubMed1995

Bilateral pallidostriatal necrosis caused by a wasp sting: a clinical and pathological study.

A previously healthy man developed an acute encephalopathy with coma after a single wasp sting on his chin. Brain CT showed bilateral pallidostriatal radio-lucencies. He died 72 hours after the sting with no evidence of primary cardiorespiratory failure or allergic reaction. Pathological findings were bilateral pallidostriatal necrosis and diffuse neuronal damage in the frontal, temporal, and parietal cortex. The neurotoxic effect of the poison, together with a hypersensitivity are the most likely explanations for this unusual encephalopathy.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementing disorders in Pamplona, Spain.

We investigated the prevalence of dementing disorders in the city of Pamplona, Spain, using a door-to-door two-phase approach. We first administered the Cambridge Examination of Mental Disorders of the Elderly (CAMDEX) to all survivors, as of March 1, 1991, of a probability sample of the total population identified in 1989 (n = 1,127). Using specified diagnostic criteria, the study neurologists extensively investigated those subjects who screened positive on CAMDEX. We found 194 subjects affected by dementia, 119 had Alzheimer's disease; 51 vascular or mixed dementia, and 16 secondary dementia. The prevalence of both dementia and Alzheimer's disease increased steeply with advancing age and was consistently higher in women. The prevalence of combined vascular and mixed dementia increased less rapidly with age, and was generally higher in men. Alzheimer's disease was the most common type of dementia. Our prevalence figures for dementia and Alzheimer's disease are similar to those previously reported in Europe.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1992

Temporal discrimination is abnormal in Parkinson's disease.

Temporal discrimination thresholds (TDT) for recognition of paired sensory (tactile, auditory and visual) stimuli given over a wide range of time intervals were assessed in 44 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and 20 age-matched normal subjects. A significant increment in TDT for all three sensory modalities was found in PD patients compared with controls. This abnormality was greatly attenuated for about 2 h by a single levodopa/carbidopa (250/25 mg) tablet. A significant correlation was found between disease severity as assessed clinically and TDT. Patients with more severe PD had higher TDT values. The study of the peripheral median nerve and cortical somatosensory evoked potential recovery curves following double electrical stimulation of the index finger showed no differences between patients and control subjects, nor changes from 'off' to 'on' motor state which could explain the findings. These results indicate the existence of an abnormality of timing mechanisms in PD.

Action Potentials↗
PubMed1991

[Brain photon emission tomography. Value of the corticocerebellar index and gammagraphic patterns in Alzheimer's disease and other diseases].

Brain single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with 99mTc-HMPAO is a diagnostic tool for evaluating regional cerebral blood flow. Recently, the diagnostic possibilities of the method are being investigated in some neurologic disorders, such as cerebrovascular accidents, seizures and dementia. This work has been carried out with 54 subjects, 9 healthy volunteers and 45 patients (31 dementia and 14 epileptics), in order to evaluate gammagraphic patterns and the utility of cortico/cerebellar activity indexes. An interesting diagnostic finding is a significant decrease (p less than 0.001) in perfusion of temporoparietal regions in the patients with Alzheimer's disease in relation with the healthy volunteers' group. We have not found significant changes in perfusion in the group of epileptic patients during the interictal phase. We conclude emphasizing the interest of the SPECT in the differential diagnosis of dementia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

The anatomical basis of somaesthetic temporal discrimination in humans.

Somaesthetic temporal discrimination (STD) is the ability to perceive as separate two successive somaesthetic stimuli applied to the same or different parts of the body. Paired electrical stimuli were applied to the index finger, using different time-intervals, to study the STD threshold (STDT) in 84 normal subjects and 51 patients with focal cerebral lesions. Abnormal STDT values were found on the affected side of patients with a lesion of the primary somatosensory cortex, and internal capsulethalamus. Lesions which did not produce sensory impairment but caused abnormal STDT were located in the posterior parietal cortex, the head of the caudate nucleus, the putamen, the medial thalamus and the lenticular nucleus. Frontal, temporal and occipital cortex lesions did not produce any abnormality in the STDT, but one patient with a bilateral lesion of the supplementary motor area (SMA) had abnormal STDT. These results indicate that normal perception of two somaesthetic stimuli as separate in time depends not only upon the integrity of the somatosensory pathway and primary somaesthetic cortex, but also of the posterior parietal cortex, SMA and subcortical structures such as the striatum and thalamus.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Rhombencephalitis caused by Listeria: clinical-radiological correlation].

Rhombencephalitis due to Listeria is a serious and infrequent infection of the brainstem. It principally affects subjects who were previously healthy. It shows itself clinically in two phases: the first with unspecific symptoms, which could last one week, and the second with the appearance of focal neurologic signs at the level of the brainstem. We present the case of a patient with rhombencephalitis due to Listeria that began initially with headache, nauseas and fever and after ten days the patient showed an asymmetrical affection of cranial nerves, cerebellar signs and sensory deficits in the left hemibody. Subsequently this became complicated with acute respiratory insufficiency, requiring admission to the Intensive Care Unit, and with episodes of urinary retention that required exploration. The early magnetic resonance image showed hypertense patch lesions that were objectified in T2 sequences at the level of the bulb and the pons. Facing a clinical-radiological suspicion of rombencephalitis due to Listeria, treatment was begun with ampicillin and tombramycin. After some days a positive haemoculture for Listeria monocytogenes serotype 4B resistant to ampicilin was detected, therefore it was replaced with vancomycin. The patient survived and on discharge he had oculomotor disorder and micturition problems as sequels. We would like to emphasise the importance of early recognition of the clinical signs of the disease and the early permormance of magnetic resonance, with diagnostic support, to be able to start a suitable antibiotic treatment as quickly as possible.

Encephalitis↗