Biomedical subjects

Hilla Ben-Pazi

Publications and source records attributed to Hilla Ben-Pazi.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

[Drug treatment for children with cerebral palsy].

Cerebral palsy is the main cause of immobility in children. This motor dysfunction is caused by several motor components such as weakness, lack of motor control and muscle hypertonia. Drug treatment, delineated in this review, mainly addresses the latter. Recently, new definitions for clinical features of hypertonia in children were published, assisting the distinction between the two common motor symptoms in cerebral palsy, spasticity and dystonia. The main functional symptoms disrupt functional daily life, dictating the overall approach and the specific drug treatment. There are an increasing number of treatments for this distressing disorder. For general spasticity, treatments provided include Baclofen. If symptoms are local, either dystonia, or spasticity, Botulinum toxin is the revolutionary drug used with significant success and relatively few side effects. For generalized dystonia, a trial of both Dopamine and Trihexyphenidyl should be considered. Cerebral palsy, like other complex disorders, requires individualized decision-making and a team approach. Drug therapy is only one aspect of treatment, yet sometimes it may serve as a window of opportunity to facilitate better motor control.

Anti-Dyskinesia Agents↗

PubMed2005

Age and medication effects on rhythmic responses in ADHD: possible oscillatory mechanisms?

Voluntary motor responses in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may reflect underlying neuronal oscillatory mechanisms. The aims of this study were: (1) to corroborate the presence of rhythmic motor abnormalities on tapping test in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, shown in previous studies; (2) to delineate the characteristics of ADHD children demonstrating these rhythmic abnormalities; (3) to assess the impact of methylphenidate (Ritalin) on this abnormal motor phenomenon. The study was designed in a double blind manner. Sixty-four ADHD children aged 6-12 years and 60 matched controls underwent a finger tapping test (1-5 Hz). We measured the abnormal rhythmic tapping with and without methylphenidate treatment in a double blind design. Conventional statistical analysis was used to assess the correlation of the presence of motor abnormality with various clinical characteristics (such as degree of hyperactivity/impulsivity). Fifty-six percent of children with ADHD compared to 8% of controls demonstrated abnormal rhythmic responses at a mean frequency of 3.1+/-0.9 Hz. These erroneous voluntary movements were more common in children with a greater degree of hyperactivity, in younger children but not significantly altered by methylphenidate treatment. Surprisingly, abnormal rhythmic responses showed less variability than found for responses for which the tapping was adequately paced, suggesting different motor control processes for normal and abnormal paced tapping. We speculate that rhythmic tapping responses reflect abnormal oscillatory mechanisms involved in ADHD, exacerbated in younger children with ADHD and in those in whom the hyperactivity/impulsivity is more pronounced.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2003

Abnormal rhythmic motor response in children with attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

Children with attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have difficulties with motor control, inhibition of motor responses, motor flexibility, and motor preparedness. We proposed that motor abnormalities in ADHD might result, at least in part, from an abnormal neuronal oscillatory mechanism necessary for motor temporal regulation. The aim of this study was to assess pacing in children with ADHD, by testing for rhythmic abnormalities of motor activity using a tapping test. Twenty-seven children (21 males, six females; aged 6 to 14 years 6 months; mean age 11 years 4 months, SD 2 years 2 months) diagnosed with ADHD according to DSM-IV clinical criteria, and 33 controls (25 males, eight females; aged 6 to 14 years 6 months; mean 11 years 1 month, SD 2 years 2 months), underwent a finger-tapping test requiring rhythmic responses to frequencies from 1 to 6 Hz. All participants who were treated on a daily basis with methylphenidate (n = 22) were medication-free on the day of the test. Most of the children with ADHD responded at a constant rate regardless of stimulus frequency, a phenomenon only seen in a small number of the controls. This specific error pattern, also seen in Parkinson's disease, has been attributed to an abnormal oscillatory mechanism mediated by dopaminergic fronto-striatal circuitry, which might also be pathophysiologically relevant for ADHD.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2003

Parkinsonian features after streptococcal pharyngitis.

Bradykinesia and rigidity developed in a 10-year-old girl during an episode of Sydenham chorea. These parkinsonian features improved over 6 months. Serum analysis demonstrated elevated anti-streptolysin-O and anti-basal ganglia antibodies. We suggest that autoimmune antibodies may cause remitting parkinsonian signs subsequent to streptococcal tonsillitis as part of the spectrum of poststreptococcal CNS disease.

Antistreptolysin↗

PubMed2003

Age-related accelerated tapping response in healthy population.

Different types of rapid tapping responses were described in the finger-tapping test. The "Hastening phenomenon" was described as an abnormal motor response in patients with Parkinson's disease. Accelerated tapping has been shown in a healthy elderly sample. It is not clear whether accelerated tapping relates to the hastening phenomenon or characterizes normal aging. We hypothesized that this sample of 21 healthy elderly people showed increased accelerated tapping but not hastening phenomenon. To assess this hypothesis, 20 healthy young and 21 elderly subjects performed a tapping test, requiring responses from 1 to 6 Hz. The healthy elderly sample showed increased accelerated tapping but not increased "hastening phenomenon." We conclude that Accelerated tapping may represent age-related motor processes unlike the hastening phenomenon characterizing Parkinson's disease.

Adult↗