Concurrent Paraspinous Myopathy and Myasthenia Gravis.

Paraspinous myopathy is a rare neuromuscular disorder characterized by selective involvement of the cervical, thoracic, or lumbar muscles. Leading clinical features include a bent spine or dropped head (antecollis). In myasthenia gravis (MG), patients may have camptocormia secondary to neuromuscular junction dysfunction of the paraspinal muscles, and this condition usually responds to acetylcholinesterase inhibitors or immunosuppressive treatments. However, concomitant MG and paraspinous myopathy with histologic and electrophysiologic evidence of myopathic changes of the paraspinal muscles has only been reported twice in the literature. In this case series, 5 patients with MG with paraspinous myopathy are reported. While neck and extension truncal weakness is not uncommon in MG, most often the weakness is due to neuromuscular junction dysfunction. Coexisting paraspinous myopathy and MG is under-recognized, is often resistant to mainstay treatments, and should be considered in patients presenting with neck or trunk extensor weakness.

Long-Term Impact of Implementation of a Stroke Protocol on Door-to-Needle Time in the Administration of Intravenous Tissue Plasminogen Activator.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing a stroke protocol (SP) in improving door-to-needle time (DTNT) and door-to-computed tomography (DTCT) time from 2010 to 2014. Published data from the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke (GWTGS) participating hospitals showed that median DTNT = 75 minutes with 26.6% of the patients achieving the recommended DTNT of 60 minutes or less. Implementation of an SP, which specifies the role of nurses, physicians, and technicians during acute stroke evaluation, can improve DTNT. METHODS: This longitudinal quality assurance study was designed to compare the DTNT and the DTCT time pre- and post implementation of an SP in our hospital. Patients' data before (2009-2010) and after (2010-2014) the implementation of an SP were collected each year during the same 6-month period and compared using statistical software SPSS 20.0 for Windows (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). RESULTS: Although our DTNT did not significantly improve over the years, the median DTNT (59 minutes) was much less than the reported 75 minutes of GWTGS hospitals. Our DTCT time diminished from 20.6 minutes in 2009 to 15.9 minutes in 2014. The percentage of patients with a DTNT of 1 hour or less did not differ among all years (P = .296) and was 55.8%. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that our performance in evaluating acute ischemic stroke patients within the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association suggested time window is reachable for prolonged periods of time. Continuous monitoring and education of all players involved are crucial to ensure best possible outcomes in the timely administration of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator.

Cranial Nerve-VI Palsy as the Main Clinical Manifestation of Neurosarcoidosis.

INTRODUCTION: Sarcoidosis is a chronic, systemic, inflammatory disorder that is characterized by the formation of noncaseating granulomas. Patients may present with cranial nerve palsy, paresthesia, paresis, pyramidal signs, progressive cognitive decline, urinary retention, seizures, or hypothalamic-pituitary syndrome. Although the diagnosis of neurosarcoidosis can be challenging, neurological manifestations of sarcoidosis occur more frequently than previously described. CASE REPORT: A 23-year-old African American man presented to our emergency department with diplopia, which was worsened on left horizontal gaze. On the day of admission, he had a witnessed seizure. Laboratory studies were significant only for mild leukopenia and erythrocyte sedimentation rate of 17 mm/h. Brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed diffuse thickening and enhancement of the dura, mild mass effect, and soft tissue enhancement through the foramen rotundum and left orbital apex. The patient was treated with intravenous methylprednisolone and discharged on 60 mg oral prednisone daily followed by a taper over a 2-month period. CONCLUSIONS: Our case demonstrates that mild neurological deficits can be the initial presentation of neurosarcoidosis in patients with undiagnosed or proven sarcoidosis.

Disorders of the Autonomic Nervous System after Hemispheric Cerebrovascular Disorders: An Update.

Autonomic and cardiac dysfunction may occur after vascular brain injury without any evidence of primary heart disease. During acute stroke, autonomic dysfunction, for example, elevated arterial blood pressure, arrhythmia, and ischemic cardiac damage, has been reported, which may hinder the prognosis. Autonomic dysfunction after a stroke may involve the cardiovascular, respiratory, sudomotor, and sexual systems, but the exact mechanism is not fully understood. In this review paper, we will discuss the anatomy and physiology of the autonomic nervous system and discuss the mechanism(s) suggested to cause autonomic dysfunction after stroke. We will further elaborate on the different cerebral regions involved in autonomic dysfunction complications of stroke. Autonomic nervous system modulation is emerging as a new therapeutic target for stroke management. Understanding the pathogenesis and molecular mechanism(s) of parasympathetic and sympathetic dysfunction after stroke will facilitate the implementation of preventive and therapeutic strategies to antagonize the clinical manifestation of autonomic dysfunction and improve the outcome of stroke.

Trends in Outcome and Hospitalization Cost among Adult Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke in the United States.

INTRODUCTION: New treatments for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) have been introduced and are expected to improve patients' overall outcomes. We assessed the impact of new therapeutic strategies on outcome and cost of hospitalization among adult patients with AIS in the United States. METHODS: Patients with AIS admitted in the United States in 1993-1994 and 2006-2007 were listed using the Nationwide Inpatient Survey database. We determined the rates of occurrence, hospitalization outcomes, and mean hospital charges for all patients. We further analyzed these variables in the ventilated and nonventilated patients. RESULTS: We identified 386,043 patients with AIS admitted in the United States in 1993-1994 and 749,766 patients in 2006-2007. The length of hospitalization was significantly higher in 1993-1994 compared with 2006-2007: 6.9 ± 4.2 days versus 4.66 ± 3 days, respectively. In-hospital mortality rate was 8.9% in 1993-1994 and 5.6% in 2006-2007 (P < 0.0001). There was a significant increase in mean hospital charges in 2006-2007 compared with 1993-1994 ($21,916 ± $14,117 versus $9,646 ± $5,727). The length of hospitalization was significantly shorter in 2006-2007 in nonventilated patients. There was a significant increase in mean hospital charges in 2006-2007 compared with 1993-1994 in both ventilated ($81,528 ± $64,526 versus $25,143 ± $17,172, P<0.0001) and nonventilated patients ($21,085 ± $13,042 versus $10,000 ± $6,300, P<0.0001). The mortality rate was significantly lower in 2006-2007 in both subgroups: 46.5% versus 59.8% in ventilated patients and 4.2% versus 8.2% in nonventilated patients (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that new therapeutic strategies have improved outcomes and increased cost of hospitalization among adult patients with AIS in the United States over a period of 13 years. The hospitalization cost was significantly higher in the ventilated and nonventilated patients in 2006-2007, which may reflect the impact of new therapeutic strategies, the availability of more intensive care units and stroke centers, and the lower mortality rate in this time period.

Serial heart rate variability testing for the evaluation of autonomic dysfunction after stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Autonomic dysfunction has been described as a frequent complication of stroke that could involve the cardiac, respiratory, sudomotor, and sexual systems. Cardiac autonomic dysfunction after stroke is one of the most recognized and has been described to increase the rate of mortality and morbidity. METHODS: We report two cases of stroke-one hemorrhagic and one ischemic-and describe heart rate variability during the patients' hospitalizations with improvement reported for each patient several days after stroke onset. RESULTS: The first case demonstrated autonomic dysfunction with severe reduction of HRV after a right parietal hemorrhagic stroke. The second case demonstrated similar findings in a patient with acute ischemic stroke. In both cases, normalization of heart rate variability occurred several weeks after stroke symptoms onset and was paralleled by a dramatic improvement of the clinical status. CONCLUSION: Our data established that serial HRV testing is a noninvasive tool that could be utilized as a marker to evaluate the dynamics of acute stroke.

Trends in outcome and hospitalization charges of adult patients admitted with botulism in the United States.

BACKGROUND: To assess the impact of new therapeutic strategies on outcomes and hospitalization charges among adult patients with botulism in the United States. METHODS: We determined in-hospital outcomes and charges for patients with botulism hospitalized in 1993-1994 and compared them with those observed among patients hospitalized in 2006-2007. Mortality, length of stay, and hospitalization charges were calculated. Age, sex, race, ethnicity, and discharge status were also reported. RESULTS: There were 66 and 132 admissions of adult patients with botulism in 1993-1994 and 2006-2007, respectively. Men predominance was observed in 2006-2007 compared to women predominance during the 1993-1994 time period. There was no significant difference in the average length of stay and in-hospital mortality rate between the two groups studied. However, in the 2006-2007 group, there was a significant increase in the mean hospitalization charges (USD 126,092 ± 120,535 vs. USD 83,623 ± 82,084; p = 0.0107) and in the proportion of patients requiring mechanical ventilation when compared to 1993-1994 (34 vs. 13.6%; p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Botulism continues to be an infrequent cause of hospitalization, with a significant increase in the average hospitalization charges in 2006-2007 when compared to 1993-1994, despite a nonsignificant change in the mortality rate and average length of hospitalization.

Advanced neuroimaging in acute ischemic stroke: extending the time window for treatment.

Early treatment of ischemic stroke with thrombolytics is associated with improved outcomes, but few stroke patients receive thrombolytic treatment in part due to the 3-hour time window. Advances in neuroimaging may help to aid in the selection of patients who may still benefit from thrombolytic treatment beyond conventional time-based guidelines. In this article the authors review the available literature in support of using advanced neuroimaging to select patients for treatment beyond the 3-hour time window cutoff and explore potential applications and limitations of perfusion imaging in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke.