Associations with multiple pituitary hormone deficiency in patients with an ectopic posterior pituitary gland

INTRODUCTION: The presence of an ectopic posterior pituitary gland (EPP) on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is associated with hypopituitarism with one or more hormone deficiencies. We aimed to identify risk factors for having multiple pituitary hormone deficiency (MPHD) compared to isolated growth hormone deficiency (IGHD) in patients with an EPP. METHODS: In 67 patients (45 male) with an EPP on MRI, the site (hypothalamic vs. stalk) and surface area (SA) [ x (maximum diameter/2) x (maximum height/2), mm(2)] of the EPP were recorded and compared in patients with IGHD and MPHD in relation to clinical characteristics. RESULTS: In MPHD (n = 32) compared to IGHD (n = 35) patients: age of presentation was younger (1.4 [0.1-10.7]vs. 4.0 [0.1-11.3] years, P = 0.005), major incidents during pregnancy were increased (47%vs. 20%, P = 0.02) as were admissions to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) (60%vs. 26%, P = 0.04), whilst EPP SA was lower (12.3 [2.4-34.6]vs. 25.7 [6.9-48.2] mm(2), P < 0.001). In patients with a hypothalamic (n = 56) compared to a stalk sited EPP (n = 11): prevalence of MPHD was greater (55%vs. 9%,P = 0.05) and EPP surface area was smaller (17.3 [2.4-48.2]vs. 25.3 [11.8-38.5] mm(2), P < 0.001). In regression analysis, after adjusting for age, presence of MPHD was associated with: major incidents during pregnancy (RR 6.8 [95%CI 1.2-37.7]), hypothalamic EPP site (RR 10.9 [1.0-123.9]) and small EPP SA (RR 2.5 [1.0-5.0] for tertiles of SA). CONCLUSION: In patients with an EPP, adverse antenatal events, size (small) and position (hypothalamic) of the posterior pituitary gland on MRI were associated with MPHD. These findings suggest that adverse factors during pregnancy may be important for the development of an EPP.

[Revision surgery after carpal tunnel release using a posterior interosseous artery island flap]

The aim of this study is to evaluate the results of fasciocutaneous posterior interosseous artery island flaps in the treatment of recurrent or persistent carpal tunnel compression syndrome (CTS).

Spindle burst like spike discharge oscillations in organotypic cultures of neonatal rat cortex

Early network oscillations and spindle bursts are typical patterns of spontaneous rhythmic activity in cortical networks of neonatal rodents in vivo and in vitro. The latter can also be triggered in vivo by stimulation of afferent inputs. The mechanisms underlying such oscillations undergo profound developmental changes in the first postnatal weeks. Their possible role in cortical development is postulated but not known in detail. We have studied spontaneous and evoked patterns of activity in organotypic cultures of slices from neonatal rat cortex grown on multielectrode arrays (MEAs) for extracellular single- and multi-unit recording. Episodes of spontaneous spike discharge oscillations at 7 - 25 Hz lasting for 0.6 - 3 seconds appeared in about half of these cultures spontaneously and could be triggered by electrical stimulation of few distinct electrodes. These oscillations usually covered only restricted areas of the slices. Besides oscillations, single population bursts that spread in a wavelike manner over the whole slice also appeared spontaneously and were triggered by electrical stimulation. In most but not all cultures, population bursts preceded the oscillations. Both population bursts and spike discharge oscillations required intact glutamatergic synaptic transmission since they were suppressed by the AMPA/kainate glutamate receptor antagonist CNQX. The NMDA antagonist d-APV suppressed the oscillations but not the population bursts, suggesting an involvement of NMDA receptors in the oscillations. These findings show that spindle burst like cortical rhythms are reproduced in organotypic cultures of neonatal cortex. The culture model thus allows investigating the role of such rhythms in cortical circuit formation. Supported by SNF grant No. 3100A0-107641/1.

Efficacy of panoramic radiographs in the preoperative planning of posterior mandibular implants: a prospective clinical study of 1527 consecutively treated patients

OBJECTIVES: Various imaging techniques, including conventional radiography and computed tomography, are proposed to localize the mandibular canal prior to implant surgery. The aim of this study is to determine the incidence of altered mental nerve sensation after implant placement in the posterior segment of the mandible when a panoramic radiograph is the only preoperative imaging technique used. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 1527 partially and totally edentulous patients who had consecutively received 2584 implants in the posterior segment of the mandible. Preoperative bone height was evaluated from the top of the alveolar crest to the superior border of the mandibular canal on a standard panoramic radiograph. A graduated implant scale from the implant manufacturer was used and 2 mm were subtracted as a safety margin to determine the length of the implant to be inserted. RESULTS: No permanent sensory disturbances of the inferior alveolar nerve were observed. There were two cases of postoperative paresthesia, representing 2/2584 (0.08%) of implants inserted in the posterior segment of the mandible or 2/1527 (0.13%) of patients. These sensory disturbances were minor, lasted for 3 and 6 weeks and resolved spontaneously. CONCLUSIONS: Panoramic examination can be considered a safe preoperative evaluation procedure for routine posterior mandibular implant placement. Panoramic radiography is a quick, simple, low-cost and low-dose presurgical diagnostic tool. When a safety margin of at least 2 mm above the mandibular canal is respected, panoramic radiography appears to be sufficient to evaluate available bone height prior to insertion of posterior mandibular implants; cross-sectional imaging techniques may not be necessary.

Evaluation of 15 mandibular reconstructions with Dumbach Titan Mesh-System and particulate cancellous bone and marrow harvested from bilateral posterior ilia

This study reports on 15 mandibular reconstructions using the Dumbach Titan Mesh-System and particulate cancellous bone and marrow harvested from bilateral posterior ilia. All cases showed segmental defects. Eleven cases involved patients with malignant tumor. Six patients had received irradiation of 40-50 Gy. Reconstructions were performed immediately in 1 patient and secondarily in the remaining 14 patients. In 13 cases, mandibles were successfully reconstructed. Of these 13 patients, 9 reconstructions were completed without complications, whereas the other 4 cases showed complications. In 2 cases, reconstruction failed completely. Overall success rate was 87%. Statistical analysis revealed the extent of mandibular defect, but not malignancy of the original disease or radiotherapy of

Minimally invasive strabismus surgery for rectus muscle posterior fixation

AIMS: To present a novel, minimally invasive strabismus surgery (MISS) technique for rectus muscle posterior fixation. METHODS: This study reports the results of 32 consecutive MISS rectus muscle posterior fixation surgeries performed on 19 patients by applying only two small L-shaped openings where the two retroequatorial scleromuscular sutures were placed. RESULTS: On the first postoperative day, in primary position, redness was hardly visible in 16 eyes (50%) and only moderate redness was visible in 6 eyes (19%). No serious complication occurred. Preoperative visual acuity and refraction remained unchanged at 6 months (p > 0.1). The preoperative convergence excess (n = 13) decreased from 10.3 +/- 4.1 to 5.2 +/- 4.0 degrees at 6 months (p < 0.005). In all patients operated on for gaze incomitance (n = 6) improvement was achieved at 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that keyhole minimal-dissection rectus muscle posterior fixation surgery is feasible and effective to improve ocular alignment. The MISS technique seems to be superior in the direct postoperative period since only minimal conjunctival swelling and no corneal complications were observed.

Functional and anatomical outcomes of vitreoretinal surgery for posterior segment complications after elective cataract surgery

PURPOSE: To assess the outcomes in patients who required 1 or more vitreoretinal interventions for posterior segment complications arising from elective uneventful cataract surgery. SETTING: Tertiary referral center, single-center study. METHODS: A retrospective interventional case series included 56 consecutive patients who were referred for surgical correction of posterior segment complications within 6 months of cataract surgery. The study period was between 1996 and 2003, and the minimum follow-up was 5 months. RESULTS: Posterior segment complications were resolved with a single surgical intervention in 40 cases (71.4%). Within 5 months of primary surgical correction, persisting or newly arising posterior segment complications were noted in 16 cases (28.6%). After a mean of 2.1 +/- 1.4 (SD) additional surgeries, the number of eyes with posterior segment problems decreased to 7 (12.5%) (P = .035). Posterior segment complications requiring more than 1 vitreoretinal intervention included retinal detachment, endophthalmitis, and choroidal hemorrhages. After primary correction surgery, the mean best corrected visual acuity increased from 0.15 +/- 0.24 to 0.37 +/- 0.33 (P = .001) after a single intervention and to 0.39 +/- 0.32 (P>.05) after additional interventions. Although the intraocular pressure (IOP) decreased from 21.8 +/- 16.6 mm Hg to 14.9 +/- 3.4 mm Hg (P = .008), 4 (7.1%) consecutive vascular optic atrophies occurred. A reduction in corneal transparency was observed in 46.4% of patients before primary surgical correction and 12.5% after primary surgical correction (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: In many cases, posterior segment complications arising from cataract surgery could be repaired with favorable functional and anatomical outcomes by a single vitreoretinal intervention. Additional surgery, if requested, provided stabilization of the anatomical and functional outcomes.

Modulation of parvalbumin expression in the motor cortex of parkinsonian rats

Dopamine deficiency in Parkinson's disease leads to numerous molecular changes in basal ganglia. However, the consequences of these changes on the motor cortex remain unclear. Here we show that the immunoreactivity of parvalbumin, which is expressed in GABAergic interneurons, increases in the primary motor cortex of parkinsonian rats. This increase can be reversed by a subsequent lesion of the subthalamic nucleus. These results suggest that dopamine deficiency induces reversible changes in GABAergic cortical cells, which might be linked with parkinsonian symptoms.

Significance of coil orientation for motor evoked potentials from nasalis muscle elicited by transcranial magnetic stimulation

OBJECTIVE: In transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the motor cortex, the optimal orientation of the coil on the scalp is dependent on the muscle under investigation, but not yet known for facial muscles. METHODS: Using a figure-of-eight coil, we compared TMS induced motor evoked potentials (MEPs) from eight different coil orientations when recording from ipsi- and contralateral nasalis muscle. RESULTS: The MEPs from nasalis muscle revealed three components: The major ipsi- and contra-lateral middle latency responses of approximately 10 ms onset latency proved entirely dependent on voluntary pre-innervation. They were most easily obtained from a coil orientation with posterior inducing current direction, and in this respect resembled the intrinsic hand rather than the masseter muscles. Early short duration responses of around 6 ms onset latency were best elicited with an antero-lateral current direction and not pre-innervation dependent, and therefore most probably due to stimulation of the nerve roots. Late responses (>18 ms) could inconsistently be elicited with posterior coil orientations in pre-innervated condition. CONCLUSIONS: By using the appropriate coil orientation and both conditions relaxed and pre-innervated, cortically evoked MEP responses from nasalis muscle can reliably be separated from peripheral and reflex components and also from cross talk of masseter muscle activation.

Mapping of direction and muscle representation in the human primary motor cortex controlling thumb movements

Larger body parts are somatotopically represented in the primary motor cortex (M1), while smaller body parts, such as the fingers, have partially overlapping representations. The principles that govern the overlapping organization of M1 remain unclear. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to examine the cortical encoding of thumb movements in M1 of healthy humans. We performed M1 mapping of the probability of inducing a thumb movement in a particular direction and used low intensity TMS to disturb a voluntary thumb movement in the same direction during a reaction time task. With both techniques we found spatially segregated representations of the direction of TMS-induced thumb movements, thumb flexion and extension being best separated. Furthermore, the cortical regions corresponding to activation of a thumb muscle differ, depending on whether the muscle functions as agonist or as antagonist for flexion or extension. In addition, we found in the reaction time experiment that the direction of a movement is processed in M1 before the muscles participating in it are activated. It thus appears that one of the organizing principles for the human corticospinal motor system is based on a spatially segregated representation of movement directions and that the representation of individual somatic structures, such as the hand muscles, overlap.

Implant-supported distal extensions in severely resorbed posterior alveolar ridges

The application of implant-borne rehabilitations in residual alveolar ridges may be restricted by various anatomic conditions, as available bone height and characteristics. Here we report the clinical outcome of implants placed in severely resorbed posterior ridges, in addition to various implant-supported treatment modalities. Extra Oral implants (Straumann, Basel, Switzerland) with the intraosseous length of 2.5–5mm were installed in the posterior alveolar ridges. Following the healing period of 4–6 months, implants were exposed and included in the distal extensions of fixed and removable prosthesis. At recall appointments were collected surgical, clinical and radiological variables, including the evidence of adverse effects. An 8-years life table analysis was calculated. The treatment protocol was applied in thirty-five patients, presenting 31 removable and 4 fixed complete implant-supported dentures. A total of 61 Extra Oral implants were placed posterior to the distal implants, at the mean distance of 29.8mm (range 15.6–62.7mm). Three implants failed during the osteointegration phase, yielding an 8-year cumulative success rate of 92.24%. Following the osteointegration period, no major bone loss or other adverse events were found. The clinical results indicated that the Extra Oral implants may be successfully used in addition to the other, longer implants. Thus, a relatively long extension in the posterior region may be employed. With careful preoperative planning, this technique offers a simple and beneficial complementary treatment option for removable and fixed complete dentures.

The ventro-medial prefrontal cortex: a major link between the autonomic nervous system, regulation of emotion, and stress reactivity?

ABSTRACT: Recent progress in neuroscience revealed diverse regions of the CNS which moderate autonomic and affective responses. The ventro-medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) plays a key role in these regulations. There is evidence that vmPFC activity is associated with cardiovascular changes during a motor task that are mediated by parasympathetic activity. Moreover, vmPFC activity makes important contributions to regulations of affective and stressful situations.This review selectively summarizes literature in which vmPFC activation was studied in healthy subjects as well as in patients with affective disorders. The reviewed literature suggests that vmPFC activity plays a pivotal role in biopsychosocial processes of disease. Activity in the vmPFC might link affective disorders, stressful environmental conditions, and immune function.