History Of Severe Head Injury Research Articles

PSEUDOBULBAR AFFECT AND COGNITIVE DECLINE POST SEVERE TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY: A CASE REPORT

Introduction: Pseudobulbar affect is described as episodes of laughing or crying that occur suddenly and uncontrollably without appropriate stimulation. Pseudobulbar affect is often preceded by various neurological disorders, one of which is a history of severe head injury. Case Report: Female, 21 years old, experienced sudden frequent laughing for no apparent reason and could not be controlled. This has been happening after she suffered a severe head injury, which was a subarachnoid hemorrhage, about two years ago. She was diagnosed with pseudobulbar affect according to Cummings criteria and confirmed by Center for Neurologic Study – Lability Scale (CNS-LS) questionnaire with a score of 19. The patient also complained of forgetting things, therefore a cognitive function was examined with Indonesian Version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-Ina) with a score of 14 which indicated moderate cognitive impairment. Discussion: Pseudobulbar affect post traumatic brain injury is suspected to be caused by decreased inhibition of sensory cortex transmission to the motor cortex and limbic system leading to disturbances in the cerebellum and decreased threshold for emotional expression. Pseudobulbar affect may coexist with impaired cognitive function due to the intersection of the anatomical structure of cognitive function with pathways that regulate emotion. Conclusion: Pseudobulbar affect with cognitive impairment creates a burden and interferes the patient’s quality of life. It is necessary for health workers to be able to identify the clinical manifestations of pseudobulbar affect as a complication after traumatic brain injury, therefore optimal management for the patients can be achieved.

Is severe head injury associated with functional (psychogenic) seizures?

ObjectivesThe aim of the current study was to compare the frequency of significant head injuries in three groups of people with seizures [idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGE) vs. temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) vs. functional seizures (FS)]. MethodsThis was a retrospective study. All patients with a diagnosis of IGE, TLE, or FS were recruited at the outpatient epilepsy clinic at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, from 2008 until 2020. ResultsOne thousand and four hundred ninety-two patients were studied (559 patients with IGE, 646 people with TLE, and 287 persons with FS). Overall, 77 (5.2%) individuals of the studied people reported experiencing severe head injuries before the onset of their seizures [9 patients (1.6%) with IGE, 56 people (8.7%) with TLE, and 12 persons (4.2%) with FS; p = 0.0001]. Compared to people with IGE, the odds ratio of having a premorbid history of severe head injury in the FS group was 2.67 [95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.11–6.40; p = 0.0280]. Compared to people with TLE, the odds ratio of having a premorbid history of severe head injury in the FS group was 0.46 (95% CI: 0.24–0.87; p = 0.0170). ConclusionSevere head injury is significantly associated with FS. However, since head injury is also a significant risk factor for focal epilepsies, it may be necessary to ascertain the diagnosis of post-traumatic seizures by obtaing a detailed clinical history and also by performing video-EEG monitoring in order to adopt an appropriate treatment strategy in these patients.

C-07 Global Precedence: Examining Contributing Effects of Age and Cognitive Functioning

Abstract Objective Global precedence (GP) is an individual’s ability to readily identify global (gestalt) features when both global and local (internal) details are presented. Prior research shows that both age and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, affect GP. The goal of the current study is to examine differences in GP between individuals with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease (EOAD; before age 65) and healthy controls (HC). Method Fourteen EOAD patients and 6 HC’s recruited from Behavioral Neurology at an academic medical center were included in the current analysis. EOAD participants were diagnosed by clinical history, routine labs, neuroimaging, and neurological examination. Exclusion criteria included unstable medical conditions and history of severe head injury, psychotic disorder, or psychoactive substance use. All participants completed a Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE) to assess overall cognitive functioning and a 4-item Navon's paradigm task (consisting of a larger letter whose shape is composed of smaller repeats of a different letter) to assess for GP. Results Linear regression analysis was performed, with the total score on Navon task as the dependent variable and age, MMSE score, and study group as predictor variables. Analysis yielded significant findings, suggesting a difference in GP performance between the two groups. However, coefficients suggested that while age did not contribute to the between-group difference, MMSE scores significantly accounted for our findings. In fact, when effects of MMSE scores were controlled, the between-group difference was no longer significant. Conclusion Findings suggest that individuals with EOAD perform worse on tasks of GP, which may be secondary to overall cognitive decline.

Cranioplasty Sinking Should Affect Normal Brain Function Mimicking Other Neurologic Illness: Fig 1.

We present the case of a 62-year-old man, with a history of severe head injury, right parietal fracture, frontal concussion, right subdural hematoma, and posttraumatic hydrocephalus. Two months later he showed progressive neurologic deterioration with bradypsychia, loss of mobility of the left side

Quetiapine Induced Acute Dystonia in a patient with History of severe Head Injury

A patient with a history of severe head injury 10 years ago regained ability to walk after years of being bound to a wheelchair. During the last psychiatric hospitalization, quetiapine was increased to therapeutic dose using a normal titration. As a result the patient developed dystonia of multiple muscle groups requiring 4 days of hospitalization for remittance of symptoms. In this paper, we take a close look at the literature concerning extrapiramidal symptoms (EPS) in this context, and we suggest that in patients with a history of head injury, it is warranted to consider a slower titration of antipsychotic medications, including ones that are considered having a lower risk of EPS such as quetiapine.

Transarterial intravenous coil embolization of dural arteriovenous fistula involving the superior sagittal sinus

BACKGROUNDWe report a rare case of traumatic dural arteriovenous fistula involving the superior sagittal sinus successfully treated by transarterial intravenous coil embolization.CASE PRESENTATIONA 38-year-old woman presented with tension headache. She had a past history of severe head injury at the age of three. Computed tomography scanning showed a heterogenous low-density area in the right frontal lobe, and magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated abnormal vascular structures in the same area. Angiography revealed a dural arteriovenous fistula involving the lateral wall of the fully patent superior sagittal sinus. The fistula was fed by scalp, meningeal, and cortical arteries, and drained into a cortical vein leading to the superior sagittal sinus. Femoral transarterial intravenous embolization with microcoils completely occluded the dural arteriovenous fistula.CONCLUSIONSevere head injury may lead to asymptomatic dural arteriovenous fistulas after a long time. Transarterial intravenous coil embolization can be effective in the treatment of dural arteriovenous fistulas involving the superior sagittal sinus.

Evaluación de la epilepsia farmacorresistente

Drug-resistant epilepsy makes up between 10 and 30% of all epilepsies, and is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. In this article we review the guidelines and techniques used when assessing a patient with drug-resistant epilepsy. Evaluation of a patient with drug-resistant epilepsy requires three steps: first a careful, detailed clinical history to establish the semiological data of the seizure, determine the factors predisposing to drug-resistance (partial epilepsy, history of severe head injury etc.) and to evaluate the antiepileptic treatment given previously and whether the patient actually took the drugs prescribed. Second, a prolonged video-EEG recording is made to determine the type and site of the seizure and decide whether surgical treatment would be suitable. Thirdly, whether structural imaging investigations (magnetic resonance) or functional imaging (sole photon emission computerized tomography or positron emission tomography) should be done. It is also useful to make neuropsychological and psychiatric studies to detect possible associated defects and preexisting psychiatric pathology--which is very common in this population--in order to establish a rehabilitation programme according to the needs of each patient. Careful evaluation of each patient with drug-resistant crises leads to the correct diagnosis of epilepsy with the possibility of its correct classification and localization and may permit improvement or change of the treatment received.

The Impact of Head Injury Severity on Planning Ability in Adolescence: A Functional Analysis

This study aimed to investigate the impact of head injury (HI) on executive skills in adolescents. The sample included a mild to moderate HI group (n = 17), a severe HI group (n = 16), and a matched control group (n = 17). Subjects were administered an IQ test and a complex planning task, requiring adolescents to plan an unexpected party. Qualitative features of planning strategies and error patterns were recorded. Significant group differences were noted, with the severe group making more errors and using less efficient strategies on the planning task. No differences were detected between the mild to moderate group and controls, although performances were not indicative of mature planning. Thus, while a history of severe HI is associated with deficits in planning skills, this is not so for milder HI. Further, care needs to be taken not to over-interpret poor planning in this clinical population without considering the normal developmental course of these skills.

Estimating the Prevalence of Organic Brain Dysfunction in Maximum-Security Forensic Psychiatric Patients

This is a descriptive study of 50 randomly selected male patients retained in a maximum-security state hospital for mentally disordered offenders. Data regarding the prevalence of several indicators of potential organic brain dysfunction are presented, including: (1) a diagnosis of any organic brain disorder, (2) a history of severe head injury with loss of consciousness, (3) a history of seizure activity, (4) evidence of cognitive impairment, (5) abnormal neurological findings, and (6) other relevant neurodiagnostic or historical findings. Results show that multiple indicators of potential brain dysfunction were present in 64% of the cases. At least one indicator of potential brain dysfunction was present for 84% of the subjects. Subjects with a diagnosis or history suggesting brain dysfunction were significantly more likely to have been indicted for violent criminal charges (p = 0.01). Implications of these findings for clinical treatment and forensic science decision-making are discussed.

Inferring Cortical Function From the Patient's Job: He Made Grass Trimmer, But Could He Have Made Vice President?-Reply

In Reply.— I disagree with Dr Roberts' suggestion that a patient's job provides no information about mental status. The patient had a Mini Mental State score of 23 or 24 on repeated tests, which is clearly abnormal and required explanation. We determined that there was no evidence of mass lesions in the brain by computed tomographic scan and no abnormality on lumbar puncture. However, since he was going to be treated only with ketoconazole, there was a good deal of angst among the house officers about whether we were missing subclinical central nervous system blastomycosis, which would require amphotericin B therapy. The history of severe head injury at age 9 years was clearly relevant, but since head injury does not necessarily impair cortical function we sought further reassurance. The patient did not graduate from high school, although this information was edited out of the manuscript. He had the kind of

Influence of Improved Drinking Habits on Brain Atrophy and Cognitive Performance in Alcoholic Patients: A 5‐Year Follow‐up Study

In the period 1977-1979, a sample of consecutively admitted alcoholic in-patients was studied with CT scan of the brain and neuropsychological tests. A subsample of 52 patients met the following criteria: age less than 46 years, no history of severe head injury or focal signs of traumatic brain damage, and no history of liver disease, drug abuse, or long-lasting anticonvulsant therapy. However, 72% of the patients showed brain atrophy and 49% intellectual impairment as compared to 16% and 13%, respectively, in an age-matched sample of men from the general population. Five years later, after excluding patients with head trauma, serious alcoholic liver disease and drug abuse, 37 patients were reinvestigated. Sixteen patients were abstinent or had greatly improved drinking habits during the 5-year follow-up period and 21 were still drinking. Alcohol abstinence was found to be associated with a regress of cortical atrophy and central atrophy as assessed by the width of the 3rd ventricle. However, the recovery was not complete as compared with the prevalence of atrophy in the sample from the general population. Among the patients a significant improvement in one cognitive test and a trend to improvement in some other tests associated with improved drinking habits was observed. Regression of central atrophy as assessed by a decreased diameter of the 3rd ventricle was associated with improvement in the very same cognitive tests. The results suggest that both atrophy of the brain and cognitive ability can improve in alcoholics who give up drinking.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Alzheimer's disease: a study of epidemiological aspects.

A case-control study was performed to determine the possible roles of various environmental factors, prior illnesses, drug use, and personal habits in the development of Alzheimer's disease. Such information was collected from 40 patients with onset of dementia prior to age 70 and from 80 community control subjects matched for age, sex, and race. No significant differences were found between patients and control subjects in toxic environmental exposures, animal contacts, smoking, drinking, or unusual dietary habits. A significantly higher frequency of prior thyroid disease was found in women patients than in women control subjects (25.0% and 7.1%, respectively). A history of severe head injury was also obtained significantly more often among the patients than among the controls (15.0% and 3.8%, respectively). Aside from these differences, which may prove to be important associative factors in this illness, there appeared to be no major premorbid demographic or clinical factors associated with this form of dementia. There was evidence, however, of a genetic factor that was manifested in an excess of dementia and mental retardation (including Down's syndrome) in families of patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Case 40-1977

Presentation of CaseA 62-year-old right-handed man was admitted to the hospital because of progressive dementia.The patient was a native of the Cape Verde Islands, from which he emigrated to this country at the age of 52 years. There was a history of severe head injury in his twenties that resulted in coma for eight days. Convalescence was prolonged, but he finally improved and was able to return to work as a civil servant fluent in Portuguese and English. Ten years before admission he had a seizure that involved the right extremities, followed by a brief period of speech . . .