Browsing by Author "Kačar, Aleksandra (6602386522)"

Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) in pregnancy may be a serious disease associated with high maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Herein, we present the long-term maternal and fetal outcomes of five pregnant GBS patients from our center. The mean age of pregnant GBS patients was 29.8 ± 3.1. Two patients had a severe disability at admission. Three patients were treated with intravenous immunoglobulins, while the remaining two were treated with symptomatic therapy. One year after disease onset, one patient had a mild disability, while the remaining four had normal neurological findings. All babies born were healthy and developed normally. GBS in pregnancy may affect both maternal and neonatal outcomes. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential for the outcome. Most patients and their babies have a favorable long-term outcome. © 2021 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Background: Although dopaminergic medication has been the foundation of Parkinson's disease (PD) therapy for decades, sensitive and specific therapeutic response biomarkers that allow for better treatment optimization are lacking. Objective: We tested whether the features of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation-based neurophysiological measures taken off-medication are associated with dopaminergic medication-induced clinical effects. Method: Motor cortex excitability [short-latency intracortical inhibition (SICI), intracortical facilitation (ICF), short-latency afferent inhibition (SAI), and input-output (IO) curve], and plasticity [paired associative stimulation (PAS) protocol] neurophysiological measures were examined in 23 PD patients off-medication. Clinical features were quantified by the motor section of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Scale (total score and lateralized total, bradykinesia, and rigidity sub-scores), and the differences between measures off-medication and on-medication (following the usual morning dose), were determined. Total daily dopaminergic medication dose (expressed as levodopa equivalent daily dose-LEDD), was also determined. Results: SICI significantly correlated with changes in lateralized UPDRS motor and bradykinesia sub-scores, suggesting that patients with stronger basal intracortical inhibition benefit more from dopaminergic treatment than patients with weaker intracortical inhibition. Also, ICF significantly negatively correlated with LEDD, suggesting that patients with stronger intracortical facilitation require less dopaminergic medication to achieve optimal therapeutic benefit. Both associations were independent of disease severity and duration. Conclusions: The results suggest variability of (patho) physiological phenotypes related to intracortical inhibitory and facilitatory mechanisms determining clinical response to dopaminergic medication in PD. Measures of intracortical excitability may help predict patients' response to dopaminergic therapy, thus potentially providing a background for developing personalized therapy in PD. Copyright © 2021 Filipović, Kačar, Milanović and Ljubisavljević.

Background: Although dopaminergic medication has been the foundation of Parkinson's disease (PD) therapy for decades, sensitive and specific therapeutic response biomarkers that allow for better treatment optimization are lacking. Objective: We tested whether the features of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation-based neurophysiological measures taken off-medication are associated with dopaminergic medication-induced clinical effects. Method: Motor cortex excitability [short-latency intracortical inhibition (SICI), intracortical facilitation (ICF), short-latency afferent inhibition (SAI), and input-output (IO) curve], and plasticity [paired associative stimulation (PAS) protocol] neurophysiological measures were examined in 23 PD patients off-medication. Clinical features were quantified by the motor section of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Scale (total score and lateralized total, bradykinesia, and rigidity sub-scores), and the differences between measures off-medication and on-medication (following the usual morning dose), were determined. Total daily dopaminergic medication dose (expressed as levodopa equivalent daily dose-LEDD), was also determined. Results: SICI significantly correlated with changes in lateralized UPDRS motor and bradykinesia sub-scores, suggesting that patients with stronger basal intracortical inhibition benefit more from dopaminergic treatment than patients with weaker intracortical inhibition. Also, ICF significantly negatively correlated with LEDD, suggesting that patients with stronger intracortical facilitation require less dopaminergic medication to achieve optimal therapeutic benefit. Both associations were independent of disease severity and duration. Conclusions: The results suggest variability of (patho) physiological phenotypes related to intracortical inhibitory and facilitatory mechanisms determining clinical response to dopaminergic medication in PD. Measures of intracortical excitability may help predict patients' response to dopaminergic therapy, thus potentially providing a background for developing personalized therapy in PD. Copyright © 2021 Filipović, Kačar, Milanović and Ljubisavljević.