ABSTRACT
One of the objectives of pre-surgical evaluation in mesial epilepsy associated to hippocampal sclerosis is the identification of patients with bad surgical prognosis for seizure ccontrol. At least theoretically, neuropsychological tests could be used in this venue. To evaluate whether verbal and visual memory tests can be used as isoleted predicotrs of the post-surgical sizure outcome in patients wit mesial temporal lobe epilepsy associated with hippocampal sclerosis refractory to pharmacological treatment. In a retrospective cohort study using the control of epileptic seizres as end-point, we evaluated 187 patients and calculated the correlation of clinical variables, cognitive evaluation, neuroimaging data, demographic data and electrophysiological findings with the result of seizure control after lobectomy in these patients. An unfavorable prognosis during the postoperative period was observed only in association with low visual reproduction scores (visual memory). However, afterBonferrroni corrections, which was necessary to reduce the chance of type I error this result was found to be spurious. We conclude that neuropsychological tests of verbal and visual memory such as those used in the routine presurgica evaluation of our patients with temporal lobe epilepsy are not good isolated predictors of surgical outcome
Subject(s)
Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe , Neuropsychological TestsABSTRACT
This retrospective analysis was conducted between May 1997 and May 2000 at the Centro de Atención Nutricional Infantil de Antímano, CANIA, in Caracas, Venezuela to assess the efficacy of two treatments (ambulatory versus day-care) of mild and moderate malnourished children. Inclusion criteria were: children under 10 years old with mild and moderate malnourishment, who attended a minimum of 3 control visits during a period of 12 months. One hundred fourteen malnourished children were included: fifty seven in ambulatory treatment and fifty seven in day-care treatment paired per nutritional diagnosis, gender and age (thirty nine mild and eighteen moderate malnourished children). The nutritional recovery criterion was weight for height above tenth percentile. No relation was found between treatment approaches and nutritional recovery at 3 and 6 months of treatment. In the group of mild malnourished children, the percentage of recovered patients at 3 months of treatment, that kept their recovered condition at 6 months was 83 (15/18) in the ambulatory treatment and 82 per cent (18/22) in the day-care treatment Age of children, associated disease, acute morbidity, dietetic risk and mother's education and age were not associated with nutritional recovery at 6 months of treatment (p > 0.05). The day-care approach resulted as effective as ambulatory in mild malnourished children. In moderate malnourished new studies will need to be conducted with greater number of patients.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Infant , Child, Preschool , Child , Ambulatory Care , Day Care, Medical , Nutrition Disorders/therapy , Follow-Up Studies , Retrospective Studies , Risk Factors , Severity of Illness Index , Socioeconomic Factors , Treatment Outcome , VenezuelaABSTRACT
As a country that produces marijuana and opium, and as a route for cocaine traffic to te United States of América, México is experiencing serious social and health problems related to the trafficking, use and abuse of these drugs, and other dependency-producing substances. In 1988 a national survey of addiction was undertaken in which information was collected on the prevalence of the use of alcohol, tobacco, inhalants, marijuana, cocaine, hallucinogens, opium, heroin, narcotic analgesics, sedatives and traquilizers. A sample was identified in the population between the ages of 12 and 65 living in urban áreas of more than 2,500 inhabitants, which account for approximately 65 percent of the country's total population. This sample consisted of 12,557 persons, according to the results of the survey, 51 percent of the population between 18 and 65 years of age use alcoholic beverage and 24.7 percent of the entire study population are active smokers. In addition, 43 percent had use one or more drugs other than tobacco or alcohol at some time. Prevelence of marijuana use was 2.6 percent, while the rates for tranquilizers, inhalants, and amphetamines were identical (0.7 percent). For cocaine the rate was 0.3 percent, and for heroin 0.1 percent