PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Y Futagi

Publications and source records attributed to Y Futagi.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Asymmetry in plantar grasp response during infancy.

The neurologic outcomes of 61 children with asymmetric plantar grasp responses during infancy were evaluated during a follow-up period of 2.8-11.9 years (mean: 6.1 years). They all had perinatal risk factors and/or neurologic signs except for asymmetric plantar grasp responses recorded during infancy. The outcomes consisted of cerebral palsy in 38, delay in motor development in 6, mental retardation in 3, borderline intelligence in 9, and normal in 5. Most patients demonstrated concordance between the side of the abnormal response and the laterally in motor function and abnormal computed tomographic findings. The asymmetry in the plantar grasp response strongly suggests the existence of brain dysfunction. Infants with this asymmetry should be carefully monitored for the development of neurologic abnormalities.

Brain↗

Bilateral painful epileptic seizures of the hands.

Secondary sensory seizures (SSS) are very rare epileptic seizures. A 14-year-old male patient with habitual painful seizures of the backs of both hands since the age of four is reported. The painful seizures were rarely followed by impairment of consciousness. Ictal EEG showed 4 to 6Hz rhythmic waves over the right anterior and mid-temporal area following complaints of pain. The absence of tumorous lesions on brain CT or MRI, childhood onset and the absence of combined seizures were characteristic features of this case compared with other patients reported to have SSS.

Brain↗

[Anterior nerve roots enhancement on MRI in a case of Guillain-Barré syndrome].

A 4-year-old girl with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) showed the abnormal enhancement on MRI in the anterior nerve roots corresponding to the region of her muscle weakness on the 26th day of illness. The enhancement on MRI almost disappeared on the 89th day of illness, when her symptoms had more improved. We think that enhanced spinal MRI is useful to reveal the involved nerve roots and the degree of the illness in GBS.

Child, Preschool↗

A Japanese patient with the Costello syndrome.

The Costello syndrome is characterized by dwarfism, unique cutaneous lesions, distinct facial gestalt, and mental retardation. We present a Japanese patient with the Costello syndrome. She showed high serum IgM level during the early infantile period. Nissen's fundplication was carried out to treat severe gastroesophageal reflux. Endocrinological investigations revealed a partial deficiency of growth hormone.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

[Hypomelanosis of Ito associated with hemimegalencephaly].

A girl aged 1 year and 2 months with hypomelanosis of Ito was reported. She suffered from intractable epileptic seizures since the second day after birth. Characteristic bizarre hypopigmented skin lesions were seen on her left shoulder and extended in a linear fashion to the flexion side of the left upper extremity. Brain MRI revealed diffuse enlargement of the left hemisphere, dilatation of the left lateral ventricle, and neuronal migration anomalies, indicating hemimegalencephaly. The types of her seizures were secondarily generalized or unilateral initially, followed by infantile spasms at 1.5 month. Around 4 months of age, frequent partial seizures appeared. Her seizures were intractable despite vigorous anticonvulsant therapy. As patients with hypomelanosis of Ito are frequently associated with neurological abnormalities, brain MRI studies were thought to be essential in detecting central nervous system anomalies, particularly in the presence of early onset intractable seizures.

Brain↗

Decreased blood coagulation activities in carbohydrate-deficient glycoprotein syndrome.

The carbohydrate-deficient glycoprotein (CDG) syndromes are a newly recognized group of inherited metabolic diseases. We report a Japanese brother and sister with a CDG syndrome. Both patients showed decreased activities of blood coagulation Factor XI and of the coagulation inhibitor protein C. In one of them there was also a somewhat decreased activity of Factor IX and of antithrombin III. Isoelectric focusing of antithrombin III revealed a decrease of negatively charged fractions and an increase of more cathodal bands. Furthermore, there was a discrepancy between activity and antigen level of Factor VIII and protein C. The patients had an incidental deficiency of factor XII. This is the first detailed report on blood coagulation systems in the CDG syndromes. These blood coagulation abnormalities may explain at least in part the thrombotic or haemorrhagic complications of the CDG syndromes.

Antithrombin III↗

Primitive reflex profiles in infants: differences based on categories of neurological abnormality.

In order to clarify reflex profiles in the first year of life in connection with categories of neurological abnormality, six primitive reflexes, i.e., the crossed extensor reflex, suprapubic extensor reflex, heel reflex, Galant response, asymmetric tonic neck reflex and plantar grasp response, were examined in 458 normal infants, 78 infants with cerebral palsy (CP) and 81 infants with mental retardation (MR), whose diagnoses were confirmed at a later follow-up examination. The change in the mean score for each of these reflexes with age was characteristic for each category or type of neurological abnormality. This implies that a presumptive diagnosis can be made in neurologically high-risk infants by examination of the primitive reflexes. Such reflexes are therefore of specific significance, among other neurological criteria, in infants within the first year of life.

Ataxia↗

[Perinatal neurosurgical care for one fetal hydrocephalus on twin gestation].

Twin gestations are responsible for a disproportionate amount of perinatal mortality and morbidity. Such gestations may impose greater demands on maternal and child physiologic systems than singleton pregnancies. The most common antenatal complications were preterm labor. The clinical record of myelomeningocele infant presenting with overt hydrocephalus in utero at 27 weeks of twin gestation and operated miniature Ommaya's reservoir placement early after birth and intentional delayed back closure for myelomeningocele was reported. Although perinatal neurosurgical care for one fetal hydrocephalus on twin gestation is clearly advantageous, it alone is relatively ineffective in reducing the incidence of the complication, preterm labor.

Diseases in Twins↗

Induced microseizures in West syndrome.

Induced microseizures (IMS) were observed in a 5-month-old girl with symptomatic West syndrome. The seizures occurred following the suppression of infantile spasms with adrenocorticotropic hormone therapy and disappeared following the cessation of clonazepam administration. The ictal manifestations consisted of periods of irregular respiration, and respiratory arrest lasting for several seconds which often involved opening of the eyes and mild extension of the neck corresponding with the diffuse fast wave bursts in EEG activity observed during sleep. These seizures were thought to be equivalent to the IMS in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, which have never been reported before in patients with West syndrome.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗

[Facilitation and recovery of the H-reflex in children].

Facilitation and recovery of the H-reflex were studied in 63 children with cerebral palsy, and the results were compared with those obtained for 60 normal children. H waves were recorded from the gastrocnemius with surface electrodes, after applying paired stimulations to the tibial nerve in the midpopliteal crease. In normal children, both the facilitation and the recovery showed a tendency to decrease with their development, while those for children with cerebral palsy were more marked than normal children in all age groups. The present study indicated that the excitability of spinal alpha motoneurons and the subliminal fringe in the motoneuron pool might change due to the maturation of and the damage to the central nervous system in children. We consider that H-reflex examination provides useful information for the supraspinal control to the spinal mechanism to regulate muscle contraction in children as well as in adults.

Adolescent↗

[Perinatal brain injuries and subsequent epilepsy: a study on intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants and hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy in full-term infants].

The clinical course of symptomatic epilepsy caused by intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) in 7 preterm infants and hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) in 9 full-term infants were followed up for more than 2 years and 6 months. West syndrome was the first manifestation of epilepsy in 10 cases (IVH: 4, HIE: 6), and all 16 patients had severe neuropsychiatric deficits. Comparing with children without epilepsy, IVH grades III and IV, mechanical ventilation for more than 6 days and neonatal convulsions in the patients with IVH, and mechanical ventilation and neonatal convulsions in the patients with HIE, were significantly related to the risk of subsequent epilepsy. These findings suggest that the degree of brain injuries may be predictive of the development of epilepsy during infancy and early childhood in the patients with IVH or HIE.

Brain Ischemia↗

[Chronological change of EEG findings in a case of pyridoxine dependency seizures].

A patient of pyridoxine dependent seizures was reported. He was born at 34 weeks' gestation and weighted 2,760 g. Apgar scores were 6 and 9 at 1 and 5 minutes, respectively. He showed the first seizure 2 hours after his birth. Phenobarbital, phenytoin, sodium valproate, diazepam and clonazepam were not effective. Pyridoxal phosphate (50 mg) was given intravenously, resulting in suppression of convulsions. However, muscle tonus was severely depressed. In EEG, a discontinuous pattern was found in quiet and indeterminate sleep on the 2nd day of life. At 5th week multifocal spikes were found, and the discontinuous pattern persisted. Ictal discharges at 13th week showed generalized, continuous, irregular and high voltage slow waves with multifocal spikes. At 27th week of life, high voltage slow waves disappeared and multifocal spike discharges decreased. At 2 years and 10 months of age, the patient was suffering from athetotic cerebral palsy and severe mental retardation. Pyridoxal phosphate at the doses of 35-40 mg/kg/day had been administered. Irritability sometimes occurred and additional 50 mg of pyridoxal phosphate controlled this irritability effectively.

Administration, Oral↗

Clinical and electroencephalographical follow-up study of early myoclonic encephalopathy.

We report a clinico-electroencephalographical follow-up study on a male patient with early myoclonic encephalopathy. Frequent massive and fragmentary myoclonic seizures, and myoclonic-clonic seizures were the initial symptoms at the age of 3 days. EEG revealed a suppression-burst pattern at the onset in which burst phases often coincided with myoclonic seizures. Subsequently, non-epileptic erratic myoclonus, various partial seizures and flexor spasms were observed. The partial seizures ceased at around 4 months of age, while the non-epileptic myoclonus and flexor spasms have persisted beyond the age of 6 months. The EEG pattern evolved into atypical hypsarhythmia at two months of age. No specific biochemical or neuroradiological findings were disclosed. His neuropsychiatric development was arrested from the onset. These observations suggest that early myoclonic encephalopathy is an independent epileptic syndrome and that it might be different from early-infantile epileptic encephalopathy described by Ohtahara.

Anticonvulsants↗

[Cockayne syndrome: siblings with different ultraviolet sensitivity and early onset of manifestations].

Siblings of Cockayne syndrome were reported. Both of them had characteristic manifestation of Cockayne syndrome. A 4-year-old boy had been noted to have irritability and nystagmus from the 6th day of his life, and his elder sister, 8 years old, had been diagnosed as cerebral palsy at the age of 6 months. The elder sister lacked photosensitivity clinically. The proband was more severely affected than his elder sister on both cerebral CT-scan and electrophysiological studies. Reduced colony forming ability after ultraviolet exposure is currently considered to be the primary abnormality in Cockayne syndrome. The cells originating from the boy had moderately reduced colony forming ability after ultraviolet irradiation, whereas the cells from his elder sister showed mildly reduced colony forming ability. There may be some relationship between the severity of the symptoms and the colony forming ability. There is a broad spectrum of clinical manifestations in Cockayne syndrome. Further investigations are necessary to clarify the relationship between the cytological abnormalities of Cockayne syndrome and its neurological manifestations.

Child↗