Biomedical subjects

L Thomander

Publications and source records attributed to L Thomander.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Depression of T cells in Bell's palsy.

We analyzed T-lymphocytes and their subsets in 20 patients with Bell's palsy. We used the monoclonal antibodies anti-Leu-1, anti-Leu-2a, and anti-Leu-3a directed against T-lymphocytes and T suppressor/cytotoxic (Ts) and T helper/inducer (Th) cell subsets. Blood samples taken in the acute and convalescent phases of the illness were compared. The percentage of T cells (Leu-1+ cells) was decreased during the acute stage, mainly because of a reduction of the Th cell subset (Leu-3+ cells). No significant alteration was found in the Ts cell subset (Leu-2+ cells). The T cell and Th cell subset depressions were restored to normal within 4 to 6 weeks of the onset of the palsy. The T cell changes in the peripheral blood in the acute stage of Bell's palsy indicate the involvement of cellular immune mechanisms.

Acute Disease↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Invasion of cranial nerves and brain stem by herpes simplex virus inoculated into the mouse tongue.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV) of a highly or slightly neuropathogenetic strain was inoculated into the tongues of mice. After appropriate survival times, the animals were killed and portions of the facial and trigeminal nerves as well as the brain stem were examined with virus isolation and immunocytochemistry for the presence of HSV. Both virus strains were demonstrated in the geniculate and trigeminal ganglia and in the CNS portion of the facial and trigeminal nerves, as well as in various brain stem areas including the trigeminal tract and nucleus, the facial and hypoglossal nuclei, and nuclei in the reticular formation. The results indicate that HSV is transported to the CNS by efferent and afferent axons of the tongue and subsequently via transneuronal passage to various brain stem nuclei. These findings provide an anatomic basis for a putative relationship between HSV and cranial nerve dysfunction.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of a high jugular fossa and jugular bulb diverticulum on the inner ear. A clinical and radiologic investigation.

From a series of patients undergoing routine radiographic examination, 112 temporal bones with a high jugular fossa were selected. Among these, 43 jugular bulb diverticula were found. The structures affected by a high fossa or diverticulum were recorded and correlated to the clinical symptoms of the patient. The vestibule was suspected to be affected in five patients. Two of these patients had tinnitus and vertigo, and three had hearing loss. In one of the latter the hearing loss was most marked in the supine position. The cochlea was close to the fossa in three patients, all of whom had tinnitus. Four patients had a defect of the posterior semicircular canal. One of them lost his hearing after a severe fit of coughing, became unsteady and showed signs of a fistula. The internal acoustic meatus and the mastoid portion of the facial canal were affected in two and four patients, respectively, who had no recorded symptoms. Twelve of 34 patients with Menière's disease and a high jugular fossa on the side of the diseased ear had a dehiscence of the vestibular aqueduct caused by the fossa or diverticulum, compared with nine of 58 patients in the unselected material. For comparison and demonstration of topographic relationships, 58 casts of unselected radiographed temporal bone specimens with high jugular fossae or diverticula were investigated. In patients with a high jugular fossa or jugular bulb diverticulum, tomographic assessment may be of value.

Diverticulum↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Electroneurography in the prognostication of Bell's palsy.

Electroneurography with automatic signal analysis and EMG have been used in repeated examinations of 23 patients with Bell's palsy in order to evaluate the usefulness of electroneurography for prognostication. Electroneurographic data (amplitude and area asymmetry) discriminate between groups of patients recovering with different degrees of sequelae on day 4. Prognosis for recovery for the individual patient can be judged with relatively high accuracy on day 4 (70% of the patients). The method is well adaptable for automatic analysis for routine diagnostic practice, fast, reliable and gives useful clinical information at an early stage of the palsy. Different methods for facial nerve examination are reviewed in the article and the pathophysiology of nerve damage and recovery with different degree of nerve involvement is discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Distribution of sensory ganglion cells innervating facial muscles in the cat. An anatomical study with the horseradish peroxidase technique.

The question of a possible sensory component in branches of the facial nerve innervating facial mimetic muscles in the cat was examined by the technique of retrograde axonal transport of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). HRP was applied to the proximal cut end of facial nerve branches innervating different facial muscle groups. Following survival periods of 71-75 h the animals were fixed by perfusion. Certain craniospinal sensory ganglia and the brain stem were processed histochemically for demonstration of HRP. HRP-labelled cell bodies, structurally resembling sensory neurons, were consistently observed ipsilaterally in the geniculate and proximal vagal ganglia and under certain conditions in the trigeminal ganglion. Measurements of HRP-labelled neurons in the geniculate and proximal vagal ganglia showed a wide size range but a unimodal size distribution with peaks in the small size range. These findings support the view that facial nerve branches innervating the mimetic muscles contain different types of sensory fibers.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Motor fibre organization in the intratemporal portion of cat and rat facial nerve studied with the horseradish peroxidase technique.

The intra-axonal transport of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was used to label fibres in the intratemporal facial nerve portion (ITFN) in the rat and cat. HRP was applied to the proximal cut end of facial nerve branches innervating different facial muscles. Following appropriate survival periods, the animals were fixed by perfusion. The ITFN was processed histochemically for demonstration of intra-axonal HRP, using tetramethylbenzidine as substrate. The distribution of labelled fibres was analyzed in serial longitudinal sections and in photographic transverse-like reconstructions from three selected levels. HRP-labelled fibres from all examined motor branches were found to be diffusely distributed almost throughout the entire ITFN, leaving only a narrow zone free of label. By applying HRP to the chorda tympani nerve, it was shown that this zoe harbours fibres of this nerve. The findings support the conclusion that the motor fibres to the facial muscles are diffusely organized in the ITFN.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Reorganization of the facial motor nucleus after peripheral nerve regeneration. An HRP study in the rat.

The normal function of the mimetic muscles may depend on the somatotopic organization in the facial motor nucleus (FMN). The horseradish peroxidase (HRP) technique has been used to examine whether this organization is maintained after facial nerve (FN) transection, epineurial suture and subsequent reinnervation of the mimetic muscles in the rat. Eleven months after nerve repair, HRP was applied bilaterally to the zygomatic or buccal rami. The distribution of HRP-labelled neurons in the operated FMN was compared with that in the unoperated FMN. On the unoperated side, HRP-labelled neurons were located in discrete subdivisions of the FMN. Ipsilateral to operation, however, somatotopic organization of the FMN was no longer present. The possible significance of these findings for the development of mass movements of the mimetic muscles after peripheral FN injury of varying origin is discussed.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in chronic suppurative otitis media. A quantitative study.

The aerobic and anaerobic bacterial flora of middle ear exudate (MEE) of 47 consecutive patients with chronic suppurative otitis media were studied using a quantitative bacteriological technique under strictly anaerobic conditions. Specimens from the external auditory canal (EAC) and the nasopharynx (NP) were obtained in order to correlate the bacterial findings with those of the MEE. Aerobic bacteria were invariably present in the MEE, the predominant aerobic species being Pseudomonas, found in 32%. Anaerobic bacteria were found in 45%: most anaerobes (55%) were cocci, 33% were of the Bacteroides species. The flora of the MEE correlated well with the bacteriological findings in the EAC cultures. In contrast, most organisms isolated from the NP represented the normal skin flora or were common respiratory pathogens.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Anti-herpes IgG and IgG subclass antibodies in Bell's palsy.

To ascertain if there is an association between Bell's palsy and infection by viruses of the herpes group, 78 patients and 59 controls were investigated. The specific antiviral IgG subclass pattern in serum against cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and varicella zoster virus (VZV) was analysed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) combined with monoclonal antibodies directed against the four subclasses of human IgG. Additional ELISA assays of IgG and IgM antibodies were also used. The mean titres of IgG antibodies against HSV-1 were higher in the acute and convalescent stages compared with controls. The frequency of values greater than 0.2 for all subclasses was raised in the patients, but not significantly so. The mean values for the subclasses were alike in patients and controls. The mean titres of IgG antibodies against CMV and VZV were similar throughout the palsy and also in controls. In the patients, the pattern of IgG subclasses was different from the controls, but not statistically so. The patients and controls were not seropositive for IgM against CMV and VZV. Four patients in the acute phase, 4 in the convalescent phase and 3 controls were positive for IgM against HSV-1. While the subclass pattern of IgG antibodies against HSV-1 is not diagnostic of reactivation of the virus, the raised IgG antibodies may suggest reactivation of a disease process and/or a superadded infection.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Activated T cells and Leu-7+ cells in Bell's palsy.

Patients with Bell's palsy were investigated with regard to the cellular immune response during the acute and convalescent stages with the purpose of acquiring information concerning the etiology of the condition. In order to ascertain whether there was activation of the immune system, the proportion of activated T cells in the peripheral blood of 14 patients with Bell's palsy was analysed using monoclonal antibodies. A transient increase of these cells occurred in the acute stage, with a return to normal in the convalescent stage. The Leu-7+ cells which play a role in the natural cellular defence against viral infections, were also studied by using monoclonal antibodies in 25 patients. A significant change in the percentage of Leu-7+ cells was not found when the samples from the entire group were analysed. However, 10 patients who were investigated between September and October 1984, when the incidence of Bell's palsy was comparatively high, showed significantly lower percentages of Leu-7+ cells in the acute stage compared with the convalescent stage. The increase in the activated T cells in the acute phase of the palsy suggests a cell-mediated, immuno-regulatory abnormality with primary or secondary immune activation. Similar cellular immune alterations are found also in multiple sclerosis. Further, the differences in the proportions of Leu-7+ cells which occurred in these 10 patients may denote a contribution of various etiological factors to the disease.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The labyrinthine portion of the facial canal in patients with Bell's palsy investigated by computed tomography.

The reproducibility of the labyrinthine portion of the facial canal by computed tomography was investigated in 22 patients with Bell's palsy. The CT images were compared with those obtained in 18 temporal bone specimens. Measurements of the diameters of different parts of the facial canal were made on these images and also microscopically in plastic casts of the temporal bone specimens. No marked difference was found between the dimensions of the labyrinthine portion of the facial canal of the involved and healthy temporal bone in the patient, nor did these differ from the dimensions in the specimens. CT of the slender, curved labyrinthine portion was found to be of doubtful value for metric estimation of small differences in width. The anatomic variations of the canal rendered the evaluation more difficult. CT with a slice thickness of 2 mm was of no value for assessment of this part of the canal. Measurement of the diameters of the labyrinthine portion on CT images is an inappropriate and unreliable method for clinical purposes.

Adult↗