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Biomedical subjects

J M Gobernado

Publications and source records attributed to J M Gobernado.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Study of antiphospholipid antibodies in patients treated with antiepileptic drugs.

BACKGROUND: Antiphospholipid antibodies (lupus anticoagulant and anticardiolipin antibodies) are associated with a variety of clinical situations, including drug-intake, but their relationships with antiepileptic drugs have been scarcely investigated. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of antiphospholipid antibodies in patients treated with antiepileptic drugs and the associated risk of thrombotic events. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed the serologic study of thirty-six consecutively prospectively recruited epileptic patients treated with diverse antiepileptic drugs during 44.38 +/- 8.08 months (mean +/- SD) in which antiphospholipid antibodies were determined using cardiolipin and a mixture of phospholipid from rabbit brain as antigen for detection of cardiolipin and lupus anticoagulant by ELISA and in addition lupus anticoagulant was carried out also using coagulometric assays. A clinical evaluation was done in order to determine the presence of thrombotic events in the following five years. RESULTS: Antiphospholipid antibodies were detected in 43% of these patients, in most of them as anticardiolipin antibodies (IgM subtype). The patients did not present thrombotic events during the time of the study. CONCLUSION: Antiphospholipid antibodies are positive in a high proportion of these patients but thrombosis were not found during the study duration. This may be explained by the fact that the profile of aCL positivity not associated to positive LA observed in these patients does not confer a risk for thrombotic events.

Adolescent↗

[Isolated sensory trigeminal neuropathy caused by a lateral pontine infarct]].

Lesion of cranial nerves due to vascular damage at pontine level generally associates affectation of near nerve tracts. Isolated fifth nerve palsy due to vascular pontine lesions has been scarcely reported. We present a hypertense 57 year old woman who suffered from sudden paresthesias and hypoesthesia on the three divisions of trigeminal nerve without motor involvement and with preservation of corneal and masseter reflexes. Cranial magnetic resonance showed small dorsolateral pontine infarct over the right fifth cranial nerve entry. Isolated sensitive trigeminal neuropathy is a rare debut form of pontine infarct.

Cerebral Infarction↗

Transthyretin Tyr77 familial amyloid polyneuropathy: a clinicopathological study of a large kindred.

More than 40 point mutations (producing different clinical manifestations) have been described in diverse points of the plasma protein transthyretin (TTR). The Met30 is considered the most common mutation, the Tyr77 mutation being the second most prevalent. However, data from patients with this late mutation are scarce, and usually come from isolated case reports or tables. The Tyr77 mutation is not as well characterized as the Met30 mutation, especially with respect to such aspects as prognosis or possible treatment by liver transplantation. We therefore present the clinical and pathological features of an extensive family with the Tyr77 TTR mutation, comprising 12 affected individuals over four generations. Six living individuals were followed over a 10-year period. Retrospective data were obtained with regard to the deceased family members. We found that an initial and sometimes prolonged carpal tunnel syndrome, beginning between the 6th and 7th decades, characterizes the Tyr77 mutation. In most cases this evolved to generalized peripheral nerve involvement, restrictive cardiomyopathy, and intestinal malabsortion. Although survival is usually high, there are progressive cases that should be candidates for liver transplant, before severe impairment has developed.

Aged↗

Isolated pontine infarctions with prominent ipsilateral midfacial sensory signs.

BACKGROUND: Pontine infarctions may produce combined motor, sensory, cerebellar, and cranial nerve dysfunction. Midline sensory complaints and facial pain are uncommon. CASE DESCRIPTIONS: Three patients are described with hypoesthesia and numbness of the midline facial area associated with dysarthria and contralateral hemiparesis due to pontine strokes. MRI demonstrated isolated ipsilateral ischemic infarctions of the ventral pons. CONCLUSIONS: Pontine infarctions can produce diverse sensory features. Ipsilateral midfacial sensory defect has been rarely reported. The clinicoanatomic basis for the ipsilateral midfacial sensory defect described is unknown. Involvement of the dorsal trigeminothalamic tract or fiber tracts related to central regions of the face, located in the medial part of the midbrain, could help to explain these data. The symptoms could be due to direct damage or to edema resulting from the infarct. In some patients, midfacial sensory complaints, particularly of the ala nasi, could be an early sign of major pontine deficits and may be important to determine appropriate treatment.

Aged↗

Study of antiphospholipid antibodies in a patient with Sneddon's syndrome and her family.

BACKGROUND: Sneddon's syndrome is a disease characterized by livedo reticularis and cerebrovascular lesions, with a hereditary transmission and unknown etiopathogenesis. A number of reports have documented a link between antiphospholipid antibodies and Sneddon's syndrome with different results. The present work was designed to sequentially study antiphospholipid antibodies in a patient with Sneddon's syndrome and her family and their potential role in thrombotic events. We used cardiolipin and a mixture of phospholipids from rabbit brain as antigen for antiphospholipid assays to determine diagnostic usefulness. CASE DESCRIPTIONS: A patient with Sneddon's syndrome and 12 available family members belonging to three generations were evaluated to determine the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies (lupus anticoagulant and anticardiolipin antibodies) during vascular thrombotic events and asymptomatic periods. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support a temporal relation between thrombotic events in Sneddon's syndrome and lupus anticoagulant; anticardiolipin antibodies remained invariable. Our index case patient and her father could be diagnosed as having primary antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Aspirin was not effective in preventing thrombosis. After the onset of oral anticoagulant therapy, no recurrences were seen. The use of a mixture of phospholipids as antigen could present some advantages in serological studies performed in antiphospholipid syndromes.

Adolescent↗

Isolated continuous rhythmic lingual myoclonus.

Isolated continuous lingual myoclonus is an exceptional entity, poorly documented and understood. A patient with a nonepileptic continuous rhythmical myoclonus, affecting the anterior portion of the tongue, as an independent involuntary disorder, is reported. Electromyography showed low frequency (2-4 Hz) bursts of genioglossus muscles activity. The EEG, visual, auditory and somatosensory evoked responses were normal. Imaging techniques like CT and MRI failed to reveal any brainstem or cerebellar lesion. Lingual myoclonus showed a very good response to sodium valproate.

Electroencephalography↗

Stroke in adult polycystic kidney disease.

In order to assess the incidence of acute cerebrovascular events, 142 patients with adult polycystic kidney disease were retrospectively reviewed. Fourteen patients (9.8%) had 19 cerebral attacks. Six patients (4.2%) had intracranial haemorrhage attacks (three ruptured intracranial aneurysms and three cerebral haemorrhages). Ischaemic events occurred in nine patients (five cerebral infarctions and four transient ischaemic attacks). Patients with ischaemic attacks had a better outcome than patients with haemorrhagic events even when transient ischaemic attacks were excluded. Patients with ruptured intracranial aneurysms were younger. Cerebral complications are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with adult polycystic kidney disease. They can prove disabling prior to or after dialysis and transplantation.

Acute Disease↗

Cluster headache and intercalated seizures in a young man: therapeutic effectiveness of flunarizine.

A young man suffering from both cluster headache and epilepsy is reported. Since the age of 37 he had recurrent generalized tonic-clonic seizures; one year later cluster headache attacks began. Neurological examination, standard laboratory tests and CT-scan were normal. The EEG showed medium-voltage sharp waves, not blocking upon eye opening, over the right parieto-temporal region. Flunarizine was added to his phenytoin therapy; it controlled both paroxysmal disorders. After six months, flunarizine was discontinued and during a one year follow-up the patient remained symptom-free. This calcium channel blocker can be regarded as an ideal drug in patients suffering from both cluster headache and epilepsy; it controls this headache syndrome and is a useful add-on to standard anti-convulsant therapy.

Adult↗