Tension-type headache is now the term used to describe headaches that have previously been grouped under various ill-defined headings, such as 'tension headache', 'stress headache' and 'muscle contraction headache'. Tension-type headaches are characterized by a pain that is mild to moderate in severity, bilateral in distribution, pressing or tightening in quality, and are not accompanied by major systemic disturbances or neurological signs. Tension-type headaches, the most prevalent from of headaches, are differentiated as being either episodic or chronic, Very little research on this disease has actually been carried out, and knowledge about key pathophysiological issues, such as the nature and site of the noxious stimulus, is limited. As a result of this and the lack of scientific interest for this from of headache in the medical field, the treatment is non-specific. However, it is suggested that a peripheral mechanism of tension-type headache be involved in the episodic form, whereas a secondary central sensitization and/or an impaired supraspinal modulation of incoming stimuli be involved in subjects with the chronic from. While most people with tension-type headaches experience mild, infrequent episodes, so that they do not regard the headache as a disease, a monority have chronic and often daily symptoms. The understanding of the balance between peripheral and central components in tension-type headache may lead us to a better prevention and treatment of this most prevalent type of headaches. This article presents a review on the drug therapy of tension-type headaches in adults.
Adult ; Central Nervous System Sensitization ; Drug Therapy* ; Head ; Headache ; Humans ; Tension-Type Headache*

Tremor is defined as involuntary, rhythmic, and sinusoidal movement. The rate, location, amplitude, and constancy vary depending on the specific type of tremor and its severity. Etiologies and treatment of tremors differ according to the type of tremor. It is helpful to determine whether the tremor is present at rest, with posture-holding, with action or with intention maneuvers. Rest tremor is most typically present in patients with Parkinson's disease. Physiologic tremors and essential tremors are common forms of postural tremor. Intention tremor is typically present in cerebellar lesions. Associated neurological symptoms and signs are also helpful for differential diagnosis. Not all patients with hand tremor have Parkinson's disease. Rest tremor, bradykinesia, rigidity, and loss of postural reflex are cardinal signs of Parkinson's disease. Careful observation of the patient is the key point of diagnosis in patients with tremor.
Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Essential Tremor ; Hand* ; Humans ; Hypokinesia ; Intention ; Parkinson Disease* ; Reflex ; Tremor*

The routine interictal electroencephalogram(EEG) continues to play an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy. The clinical investigation of brain disease in the last decade has been marked by dramatic advances in functional imaging. magnetic resonance scanning and digitized EEG. Epilepsy is a disorder of electrical hyperirritability. The sensitivity and specificity of the EEG in the diagosis of epilepsy have been disputed. In this review, the type of EEG also the role of EEG in various clinical situations are summarized.
Brain Diseases ; Diagnosis* ; Electroencephalography* ; Epilepsy* ; Sensitivity and Specificity

No abstract available.
Aged* ; Humans ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases*

Two cases of vertebra plana due to eosinophilic granuloma were experienced and successfully treated by anterior fusion of the involved spines at the department of Orthopedic Surgery in Seoul National University Hospital. Literature on the subject was reviewed.
Eosinophilic Granuloma ; Granuloma ; Orthopedics ; Seoul ; Spine

Current treatment strategies for levodopa-induced psychosis in advanced Parkinson's disease have had limited success. Reduction or discontinuation of levodopa and coadministration with dopamine-blocking neuroleptics may attenuate the psychotic symptoms, but these strategies are associated with worsening of parkinsonian symptoms. Administration of 5-HT3 receptor antagonist ; ondansetron, a newer strategy to attenuate psychosis of Parkinson' disease without motor deterioration was introduced. A 41-year-old young-onset male, who was diagnosed as Parkinson's disease 7 years ago, was treated with levodopa therapy, and had levodopa-induced psychosis(delusion, hallucination, paranoid, insomnia). After trial of ondansetron, he showed improvement in the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale(from 21 points to 9 points) in spite of increasing the dosage of levodopa. With ondansetron, we could increase the dosage of levodopa without psychotic complications(esp, hallucination), and he showed improvement in the motor fluctuation.
Adult ; Antipsychotic Agents ; Hallucinations ; Humans ; Levodopa ; Male ; Ondansetron ; Parkinson Disease ; Psychotic Disorders* ; Receptors, Serotonin, 5-HT3

BACKGROUNDS: The inflammatory reaction after cerebral ischemia involving adhesion molecules aggravates neurologic deficit. This study aimed to study the change of plasma level of the adhesion molecules after acute cerebral ischemia. METHODS: Nineteen patients with acute cerebral infarction and ten control subjects without a history of cerebrovascular disease were included in this study. The patient groups were subgrouped into large artery atherosclerosis and small artery occlusion groups according to TOAST classification. Plasma levels of sP-selectin, sE-selectin, sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 were measured within 24 hours and in 6 to 8 days after acute ischemic infarction. RESULTS: The plasma level of sP-selectin was elevated in acute stroke patients within 24 hours and in 6 to 8 days after stroke onset compared with control group(p<0.05). But plasma levels of sE-selectin, sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 were not different from those of control group. The plasma level of sP-selectin was significantly elevated in large artery artherosclerosis group compared with control group. CONCLUSION: This study suggest that P-selectin actively involves in inflammatory process after acute ischemic stroke, especially associated with atherosclerosis.
Arteries ; Atherosclerosis ; Brain Ischemia ; Cerebral Infarction ; Classification ; Humans ; Infarction ; Neurologic Manifestations ; P-Selectin ; Plasma* ; Stroke*

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Valproic acid (2-propylpentanoic acid) which enhances GABA synthesis and blocks it's degradation has been useful treatment of migraine and may activate GABA receptors to modulate trigeminal nociceptive neurons innervating the meninges. But the mechanism and action of sodium valproate in headache is not clear. To investigate the mechanism of valproic acid action in headache model, we compared the change of dural plasma protein extravasation in both substance-P neurogenic inflammation rats with valproic acid pretreatment and without valproic acid pretreatment. METHOD: Sprague-Dawely rats were pretreated with valproate 30 minutes prior to substance-P administration in order to test the effects of sodium valproate on dural plasma protein extravasation by detecting the amount of extravasated Evans blue in the dura matter. To examine the abilities of either bicuculine (GABAA antagonist) and phaclofen (GABAB antagonist) to reverse the effect of valproate, they were administered 5 min before valproate administration. After then we also test the effect of muscimol (GABAA agonist) and bicuculine (GABAA antagonist) in substance-P induced neurogenic inflammation rats. RESULTS: Intraperitoneal injection of sodium valproate and muscimol reduced dural plasma protein extravasation after intravenous substance-P administration. The GABAA antagonist bicuculine completely reversed the effect of valproate and muscimol on plasma extravasation following substance-P administration, whereas the GABAB receptor antagonist, phaclofen, did not. CONCLUSION: We concluded that the attenuation of dural plasma protein extravasation by valproate and muscimol is mediated by via GABAA receptors within the meninges. Agonists and modulators at the GABAA receptor may become useful for the development of selective therapeutic agents for migraine headache.
Animals ; Evans Blue ; gamma-Aminobutyric Acid ; Headache* ; Injections, Intraperitoneal ; Meninges ; Migraine Disorders ; Muscimol ; Neurogenic Inflammation ; Nociceptors ; Plasma ; Rats* ; Receptors, GABA ; Sodium* ; Valproic Acid*

A drug interaction can be defined as an interaction between a drug and other drugs that prevent the drug from performing as expected. These processes may include alterations in the pharmacokinetics of the drug, such as modulations in the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination (ADME) of a drug. Alternatively, drug interactions may be the result of the pharmacodynamic characteristics of the drug: the concomitant medication of a receptor antagonist and an agonist for the same receptor. The following interaction may increase or decrease the effectiveness of the drugs or the adverse drug reactions of the drugs. The possibilities of drug interactions should increase as the number of drugs being taken increases in patients. Therefore, patients taking several drugs simultaneously are at the greatest risk for interactions. Drug interactions can contribute to the increasing cost of healthcare because of the costs of medical care that are required to treat problems caused by changes in effectiveness or adverse drug reactions. The drug utilization review (DUR) system has been defined as a structured, ongoing initiative that interprets patterns of drug usage in relation to predetermined criteria and attempts to prevent or minimize inappropriate prescribing. The primary objectives of DUR are to improve the quality of health care for healthcare members and to assist in containing health care costs. In order to achieve these goals, prescription claims must be reviewed both prospectively and retrospectively. The DUR system supplies information to prohibit co-dispensing of contraindicated drugs which increases the risk of drug interactions properly to all the healthcare professionals participating in the care of the patients. In this article, we suggest the importance of DUR in relation to the contraindication of co-medication drugs.
Absorption ; Delivery of Health Care ; Diphtheria Toxoid ; Drug Interactions ; Drug Toxicity ; Drug Utilization ; Drug Utilization Review ; Equipment and Supplies ; Haemophilus Vaccines ; Health Care Costs ; Humans ; Inappropriate Prescribing ; Prescriptions ; Quality of Health Care

Background: and Purpose Stereopsis refers to the perception of depth and awareness of the distance of an object from the observer that results from the brain receiving visual stimuli from both eyes in combination. Patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (PD patients) typically experience problems with vision, eyeball movements, and visual perception due to degeneration of the cells that generate dopamine in the brain. We therefore hypothesized that stereopsis is affected more by visual cortical dysfunction in idiopathic PD than by retina and subcortical structural dysfunction. Methods: We analyzed stereopsis in 12 PD patients and 7 healthy controls using a three-dimensional (3D) television (TV). Before allowing patients to watch TV, we examined their visual acuity and strabismus using the Titmus Stereo Fly Test, and evaluated their cognitive function using cognitive tests. The patients watched 3D and two-dimensional (2D) versions of a movie with an approximate duration of 17 minutes, and then completed a questionnaire about stereopsis. All subjects underwent brain F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positronemission tomography after watching the 3D version of the movie. One week later, subjects watched the 2D version of the same movie under the same conditions. Each scan was analyzed using statistical parametric mapping (version 8) software. Results: The visual cortex was activated less in the PD patients than in the healthy controls when watching the 2D or 3D movie. However, there was no significant difference between watching 2D and 3D movies in the PD patients or healthy controls. Conclusions The lower activation of the primary visual cortex in PD patients suggests the presence of dysfunction of the visual cortex. In addition, there was less activation of the visual association cortex in PD patients when watching a 3D movie than in controls under the same conditions. This might be one reason why PD patients do not recognize real and dynamic stereopsis. These findings have clinical significance since they suggest that safety needs to be considered when making devices or programs using 3D or virtual reality for use by patients with various cerebral degenerative diseases.