Post-Traumatic Headache is Associated with Worse Anxiety and Mood Symptoms in Adolescent Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

This study examined the relationships between post-traumatic headache (PTH) and mental health symptoms after concussions to inform adolescent concussion management. Headache is the most common complaint following adolescent concussion. In this sample of 123 adolescents with concussion, there was a 5-fold increase in odds of clinically elevated anxiety, as well as increased mental health symptoms (anxiety, depression, anger, and disruptive behaviours), among adolescents with PTH relative to those without PTH. Adolescents with headache following concussions are vulnerable to worse mental health outcomes, particularly anxiety, and may benefit from routine monitoring of mental health symptoms for early detection and intervention.

Risk factors for decline in cognitive performance following deployment-related mild traumatic brain injury: A preliminary report.

Thorough identification of risk factors for delayed decline in cognitive performance following combat-related mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is important for guiding comprehensive post-deployment rehabilitation. In a sample of veterans who reported at least one deployment-related mTBI, preliminary results indicate that factors including a history of loss of consciousness over 1 min, current obesity and hypertension, and Black race were more prevalent in those with decreased scores on a measure of memory function. These factors should be considered by clinicians and researchers working with current and former military personnel.

Functional Gains in Children Receiving Inpatient Rehabilitation After Brain Tumor Resection.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether children with brain tumors treated with resection benefit from inpatient rehabilitation and to explore what factors present at admission may predict better functional outcomes. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort design. SETTING: Pediatric inpatient rehabilitation unit. PARTICIPANTS: Forty patients (N=40; ages 3-21y; 42.5% female) admitted to the rehabilitation unit between 2003 and 2015 after brain tumor resection. INTERVENTIONS: Patients received multidisciplinary rehabilitation therapies as part of their admission to inpatient rehabilitation, including occupational, physical, and speech-language therapy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Functional outcomes included the FIM for Children (WeeFIM) at discharge and 3-month follow-up as well as WeeFIM efficiency. RESULTS: A repeated-measures analysis of variance using patient WeeFIM Developmental Functional Quotients (DFQs) at admission, discharge, and 3-month follow-up showed significant gains in total WeeFIM DFQ scores across time. Admission WeeFIM DFQ, time from surgery to admission, and age at admission provided the strongest model for predicting discharge and 3-month follow-up WeeFIM DFQ scores. Admission WeeFIM DFQ and time from surgery to admission provided the strongest model for predicting WeeFIM efficiency. Total Neurological Predictor Scale (NPS) at admission did not add predictive power to any of the 3 models over and above patient characteristics (admission WeeFIM DFQ, age at admission, time from surgery to admission). CONCLUSIONS: Patients admitted to inpatient rehabilitation after brain tumor resection made significant functional gains (as measured by the WeeFIM) during inpatient rehabilitation and continued to make significant gains 3 months after discharge. Age and timing of admission provided the strongest models for predicting patient outcomes. The NPS did not predict functional outcomes after rehabilitation when controlling for other variables known to influence rehabilitation outcomes.

Sirolimus Treatment in Sturge-Weber Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Sturge-Weber syndrome is a rare neurovascular disorder associated with capillary malformation, seizures, cognitive impairments, and stroke-like episodes (SLEs), arising from a somatic activating mutation in GNAQ. Studies suggest this mutation may cause hyperactivation of the mammalian target of rapamycin pathway. Sirolimus is an mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor studied in other vascular anomalies and a potentially promising therapy in Sturge-Weber syndrome. METHODS: Ten patients with Sturge-Weber syndrome brain involvement and cognitive impairments were enrolled. Oral sirolimus was taken for six months (maximum dose: 2 mg/day, target trough level: 4-6 ng/mL). Neuropsychological testing, electroencephalography, and port-wine score were performed at baseline and after six months on sirolimus. Neuroquality of life, adverse events, and Sturge-Weber Syndrome Neurological Score (neuroscore) were recorded at each visit. RESULTS: Sirolimus was generally well tolerated; one subject withdrew early. Adverse events considered related to sirolimus were mostly (15/16) grade 1. A significant increase in processing speed was seen in the overall group (P = 0.031); five of nine patients with available data demonstrated statistically rare improvement in processing speed. Improvements were seen in the neuroquality of life subscales measuring anger (P = 0.011), cognitive function (P = 0.015), and depression (P = 0.046). Three subjects experiencing SLEs before and during the study reported shortened recovery times while on sirolimus. CONCLUSIONS: Sirolimus was well tolerated in individuals with Sturge-Weber syndrome and may be beneficial for cognitive impairments, especially in patients with impaired processing speed or a history of SLE. A future, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of sirolimus in patients with Sturge-Weber syndrome is needed to further understand these potentially beneficial effects.

Quality of Life in Children With Sturge-Weber Syndrome.

AIM: We assessed the utilization of the National Institutes of Health Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders (Neuro-QoL) in pediatric patients with Sturge-Weber syndrome, a rare neurovascular disorder which frequently results in seizures, brain atrophy, calcification, and a range of neurological impairments. METHODS: Subjects were seen clinically and consented for research. All 22 patients filled out the Pediatric Neuro-QoL. The Neuro-QoL subscores were converted to T-scores to compare with the referenced control population. Twenty-one participants also filled out the Brain Vascular Malformation Consortium Database Questionnaire containing data pertaining to Sturge-Weber syndrome-related medical history, medications, comorbidities, and family history. All data were analyzed with a significance threshold of P < 0.05. RESULTS: Cognitive function quality of life was significantly lower (P < 0.001) in pediatric patients with Sturge-Weber syndrome compared with referenced control subjects. Male gender (P = 0.02) was associated with lower cognitive function Neuro-QoL. The extent of skin (R = -0.46, P = 0.04), total eyelid port-wine birthmark (R = -0.56, P = 0.007), eye (R = -0.58, P = 0.005), and total Sturge-Weber syndrome involvement (R = -0.63, P = 0.002) were negatively correlated with cognitive function Neuro-QoL. A younger age at seizure onset was associated with lower cognitive function Neuro-QoL (hazard ratio = 0.90, P = 0.004) even after controlling for extent of brain, skin, or eye involvement. Antidepressant use was associated with lower cognitive function Neuro-QoL (P = 0.005), and cognitive function Neuro-QoL was negatively correlated with depression Neuro-QoL; however, after adjusting for depression this relationship was no longer significant. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest targeting cognitive function Neuro-QoL in treatment trials and reiterate the prognostic value of early seizure onset. In addition, sex-related differences were noted, which should be further studied.

Physical and Family History Variables Associated With Neurological and Cognitive Development in Sturge-Weber Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Sturge-Weber syndrome (SWS) is caused by a somatic mutation in GNAQ leading to capillary venous malformations in the brain presenting with various neurological, ophthalmic, and cognitive symptoms of variable severity. This clinical variability makes accurate prognosis difficult. We hypothesized that the greater extent of physical factors (extent of skin, eye, and brain involvement), presence of possible genetic factors (gender and family history), and age of seizure onset may be associated with greater symptom severity and need for surgery in patients with SWS. METHODS: The questionnaire was collected from 277 participants (age: two months to 66 years) with SWS brain involvement at seven US sites. RESULTS: Bilateral brain involvement was associated with both learning disorder and intellectual disability, whereas port-wine birthmark extent was associated with epilepsy and an increased likelihood of glaucoma surgery. Subjects with family history of vascular birthmarks were also more likely to report symptomatic strokes, and family history of seizures was associated with earlier seizure onset. Learning disorder, intellectual disability, strokelike episodes, symptomatic stroke, hemiparesis, visual field deficit, and brain surgery were all significantly associated with earlier onset of seizures. CONCLUSION: The extent of brain and skin involvement in SWS, as well as the age of seizure onset, affect prognosis. Other genetic factors, particularly variants involved in vascular development and epilepsy, may also contribute to neurological prognosis, and further study is needed.