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Biomedical subjects

F Sartucci

Publications and source records attributed to F Sartucci.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

[Personal clinical and neurophysiological experience in the surgically treated carpal tunnel syndrome].

In 18 cases of carpal tunnel syndrome treated by surgical decompression of the median nerve, a neurophysiological control was performed before and after surgery. In all cases improvement or disappearance of the pain was observed; improvement in motor function was less constant. Control of the median nerve conduction showed that in all cases with preoperative distal latency less than 6 msec. there was a normalization of the nerve conduction after only 3 months. In cases of distal latency over 6 msec, and especially in those with complete motor conduction block, the latency remain within patological limits even 15 months after surgery. This may be explained either by a slower conduction of the regenerated fibres or by a persistent myelinic and axonal damage of the nerve.

Adult

Blink reflexes in severe traumatic coma.

Blink reflexes were studied in 21 patients in coma after severe head injury. Our observations suggest that blink reflexes are a simple, objective, neurophysiological test to evaluate brainstem function. Correlations between these reflexes and the anatomoclinical stanges of coma and the Glasgow coma scale have been established. Presence of the early R1 component shows the integrity of at least a part of the pontine structures. The appearance of the late R2 component is correlated with a better chance of recovery from coma.

Acute Disease

N70 and P100 can be independently affected in multiple sclerosis.

We have studied the relationship between N70 and P100 of the pattern visual evoked potential in 98 patients with multiple sclerosis and in 59 controls. In patients with multiple sclerosis, P100 was either absent or had prolonged latency in 121 eyes (61.7%), while N70 was absent or prolonged in 97 eyes (49.5%). The total number of eyes with either N70 and/or P100 abnormalities was 137 (69.9%). Eighty eyes (40.8%) had abnormal latency of both P100 and N70, while 41 eyes showed P100 delays without corresponding N70 changes. Seventeen eyes had abnormal N70, but normal P100 latency. N70 and P100 appear to be more often absent in the definite rather than in the possible multiple sclerosis group. These data show that N70 and P100 can be independently affected in patients with MS.

Adolescent

[Status epilepticus in chronically dialyzed patients treated with erythropoietin].

This paper describes the clinical features of two patients with chronic renal failure and uremic anaemia treated with recombinant human erythropoietin (9000 I.U. subcutaneously subdivided in 3 times weekly at the end of haemodialysis treatment) who developed seizures and status epilepticus. This treatment has unequivocal benefits but in some patients has been accompanied by elevated blood pressure leading to hypertensive encephalopathy with seizures. In fact, the correction of the anaemia results in a rise in packed cell volume with a consequent increase in blood viscosity, predisposing to increased vascular resistance and the development of hypertension.

Adult

[Somatosensory evoked potentials after stimulation of the posterior tibial nerve in multiple sclerosis: comparative analysis with other modalities of evoked response and magnetic resonance].

Electrophysiological tests have proved to be a valuable method in assessing multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. In the last few years, scalp recorded short latency somatosensory evoked potentials to stimulation of nerves in the "lower extremity" have been more and more extensively employed. Some studies have aimed at comparing the sensitivity of MR imaging and multimodality evoked potentials, with somewhat conflicting results. In the present study posterior tibial nerve somatosensory evoked potentials (ptnSEPs) were performed in 29 MS patients with the aim to investigate the ability in revealing spinal cord conduction abnormalities and the sensitivity towards other evoked potentials and MR in MS. ptnSEPs showed a high percentage of abnormalities which did not significantly differ from that of visual evoked potentials; moreover in conjunction with median nerve SEPs can be used to localize thoracic or lumbar cord demielinating lesions, not evidenced on MR imaging. These results confirm that ptnSEPs, although non specific and crude in terms of precise localization, are a sensitive tool in detecting lesions, even subclinical, in MS patients. Moreover in anatomic regions like spinal cord where MR imaging is not very sensitive because the lower signal-to-noise ratio, they represent the only method available for demonstrating lesions.

Adult