ABSTRACT
The sphenoid ridge approach (SRA) was initially described as a surgical technique for treating vascular pathologies near the Sylvian fissure. However, limited studies have systematically explored the use of skull base techniques in pediatric patients. This study investigated an extended variation in the sphenoid ridge approach (E-SRA), which systematically removed the pterion, orbital walls (roof and lateral wall), greater sphenoid wing, and anterior clinoid process to access the base of the skull. OBJECTIVE: This report aimed to evaluate the advantages of the extradural removal of the orbital roof, pterion, sphenoid wing, and anterior clinoid process as a complement to the sphenoid ridge approach in pediatric patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We enrolled 36 patients with suspected neoplastic diseases in different regions. The E-SRA was performed to treat the patients. Patients were included based on the a priori objective of a biopsy or a total gross resection. The surgical time required to complete the approach, associated bleeding, and any complications were documented. RESULTS: Our results demonstrated that the proposed a priori surgical goal, biopsy, or resection were successfully achieved in all cases. In addition, using the E-SRA technique was associated with a shorter operative time, minimal bleeding, and a lower incidence of complications. The most frequently encountered complications were related to dural closure. CONCLUSIONS: The extended sphenoid ridge approach represents a safe and effective option for managing intracranial tumors in pediatrics.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: During epilepsy surgery, the gold standard to identify irritative zones (IZ) is electrocorticography (ECoG); however, new techniques are being developed to detect IZ in epilepsy surgery and in neurosurgery in general, such as infrared thermography mapping (ITM), and the use of thermosensitive/thermochromic materials. METHODS: In a cohort study of consecutive patients with focal drug-resistant epilepsy of the temporal lobe treated with surgery, we evaluated possible adverse effects to the transient placement of a thermochromic/thermosensitive silicone (TTS) on the cerebral cortex and their postoperative evolution. Furthermore, we compared the precision of TTS for detecting cortical IZ against the gold standard ECoG and with ITM, as proof of concept. RESULTS: We included 10 consecutive patients, 6 women (60%) and 4 men (40%). Age ranges from 15 to 56 years, mean 33.2 years. All were treated with unilateral temporal functional lobectomy. The mean hospital stay was 4 days. There were no immediate or late complications associated with the use of any of the modalities described. In the 10 patients, we obtained consistency in locating the IZ with ECoG, ITM, and the TTS. CONCLUSION: The TTS demonstrated biosecurity in this series. The accuracy of the TTS to locate IZ was similar to that of ECoG and ITM in this study. More extensive studies are required to determine its sensitivity and specificity.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this work is to discuss the importance and possible application of some foundations of quantum mechanics in the health-disease process, considering for this, that the laws and foundations of atomic theory are the same that govern displacement in space and time in human beings. Based on the impossibility of determining the displacement of subatomic particles in a given space and time, as a consequence of not having measuring instruments for said microscales, we propose feasible that the same happens with the uncertainty generated by the times and movements of human beings in really large spaces, reason why the analysis of the temporo-spatial location of a moving subject, in a certain time and space is impossible, fact that we consider, could represent the behavior in Pandemics. The foundations of quantum mechanics that have been considered for this purpose are dynamic systems, the Schrödinger cat paradox, the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, the law of gases, times and movements, and the Maxwell-Boltzmann entropy. On the other hand, it is proposed to consider the adaptation of measurement ecis ecisión statistical procedures (decisión tree and set theory) and finally the implementation of a unitary probabilistic cube is proposed, which allows locating a subject immersed in the health process disease through three axes developed considering the definition of health stipulated by the WHO.
El presente trabajo tuvo como finalidad discutir la importancia y la posible aplicación de algunos fundamentos de la mecánica cuántica en el proceso de salud-enfermedad, considerando para esto que las leyes y fundamentos de la teoría atómica son los mismos que rigen los desplazamientos en el espacio y el tiempo en los seres humanos. Con base en la imposibilidad de determinar el desplazamiento de las partículas subatómicas en un espacio y tiempo determinado, como consecuencia de no contar con instrumentos de medición para dichas microescalas, consideramos factible que lo mismo suceda con la incertidumbre generada por los tiempos y movimientos de los seres humanos en espacios realmente grandes, por lo que el análisis de la ubicación temporo-espacial de un sujeto en movimiento, en un tiempo y en un espacio determinado, es imposible. Creemos que este hecho podría representar el comportamiento en las pandemias. Los fundamentos de la mecánica cuántica que se han considerado con dicho fin son: los sistemas dinámicos; la paradoja del gato de Schrödinger; el principio de incertidumbre de Heisenberg; la ley de gases, tiempos y movimientos; la entropía de Maxwell-Boltzmann. Por otra parte, se propone considerar la adaptación de herramientas de medición basadas en procedimientos estadísticos (árbol de decisiones y teoría de conjuntos) y, finalmente, se propone la implementación de un cubo probabilístico unitario, el cual permita ubicar a un sujeto inmerso en el proceso de salud-enfermedad mediante tres ejes desarrollados según la definición de salud estipulada por la Organización Mundial de la Salud.
Subject(s)
Disease , Quantum Theory , Uncertainty , Decision Making , Humans , Models, Theoretical , Probability , World Health OrganizationABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: In several epilepsy etiologies, the macroscopic appearance of the epileptogenic tissue is identical to the normal, which makes it hard to balance between how much cytoreduction or disconnection and brain tissue preservation must be done. A strategy to tackle this situation is by evaluating brain metabolism during surgery using infrared thermography mapping (IrTM). METHODS: In 12 epilepsy surgery cases that involved the temporal lobe, we correlated the IrTM, electrocorticography, and neuropathology results. RESULTS: Irritative zones (IZ) had a lower temperature in comparison to the surrounding cortex with normal electric activity (difference in temperature (ΔT) from 1.2 to 7.1, mean 3.40°C standard deviation ± 1.61). The coldest zones correlated exactly with IZ in 9/10 cortical dysplasia (CD) cases. In case 3, the coldest area was at 1 cm away from the IZ. In 10/10 dysplasia cases (cases 1-4, 6-11), there was a radial heating pattern originating from the coldest cortical point. In 2/2 neoplasia cases, the temporal lobe cortical temperature was more homogeneous than in the CD cases, with no radial heating pattern, and there were no IZ detected. In case 8, we found the coldest IrTM recording in the hippocampus, which correlated to the maximal irritative activity recorded by strip electrodes. The ΔT is inversely proportional to epilepsy chronicity. CONCLUSION: IrTM could be useful in detecting hypothermic IZ in CD cases. As the ΔT is inversely proportional to epilepsy chronicity, this variable could affect the metabolic thermic patterns of the human brain.
ABSTRACT
El presente trabajo tuvo como finalidad discutir la importancia y la posible aplicación de algunos fundamentos de la mecánica cuántica en el proceso de salud-enfermedad, considerando para esto que las leyes y fundamentos de la teoría atómica son los mismos que rigen los desplazamientos en el espacio y el tiempo en los seres humanos. Con base en la imposibilidad de determinar el desplazamiento de las partículas subatómicas en un espacio y tiempo determinado, como consecuencia de no contar con instrumentos de medición para dichas microescalas, consideramos factible que lo mismo suceda con la incertidumbre generada por los tiempos y movimientos de los seres humanos en espacios realmente grandes, por lo que el análisis de la ubicación temporo-espacial de un sujeto en movimiento, en un tiempo y en un espacio determinado, es imposible. Creemos que este hecho podría representar el comportamiento en las pandemias. Los fundamentos de la mecánica cuántica que se han considerado con dicho fin son: los sistemas dinámicos; la paradoja del gato de Schrödinger; el principio de incertidumbre de Heisenberg; la ley de gases, tiempos y movimientos; la entropía de Maxwell-Boltzmann. Por otra parte, se propone considerar la adaptación de herramientas de medición basadas en procedimientos estadísticos (árbol de decisiones y teoría de conjuntos) y, finalmente, se propone la implementación de un cubo probabilístico unitario, el cual permita ubicar a un sujeto inmerso en el proceso de salud-enfermedad mediante tres ejes desarrollados según la definición de salud estipulada por la Organización Mundial de la Salud
The purpose of this work is to discuss the importance and possible application of some foundations of quantum mechanics in the health-disease process, considering for this, that the laws and foundations of atomic theory are the same that govern displacement in space and time in human beings. Based on the impossibility of determining the displacement of subatomic particles in a given space and time, as a consequence of not having measuring instruments for said microscales, we propose feasible that the same happens with the uncertainty generated by the times and movements of human beings in really large spaces, reason why the analysis of the temporo-spatial location of a moving subject, in a certain time and space is impossible, fact that we consider, could represent the behavior in Pandemics. The foundations of quantum mechanics that have been considered for this purpose are dynamic systems, the Schrödinger cat paradox, the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, the law of gases, times and movements, and the Maxwell-Boltzmann entropy. On the other hand, it is proposed to consider the adaptation of measurement ecis ecisión statistical procedures (decisión tree and set theory) and finally the implementation of a unitary probabilistic cube is proposed, which allows locating a subject immersed in the health process disease through three axes developed considering the definition of health stipulated by the WHO
Subject(s)
Humans , Health-Disease Process , Quantum Theory , Uncertainty , World Health Organization , Decision Making , Models, Theoretical , ProbabilityABSTRACT
This paper presents the MnemoCity task, which is a 3D application that introduces the user into a totally 3D virtual environment to evaluate spatial short-term memory. A study has been carried out to validate the MnemoCity task for the assessment of spatial short-term memory in children, by comparing the children's performance in the developed task with current approaches. A total of 160 children participated in the study. The task incorporates two types of interaction: one based on standard interaction and another one based on natural interaction involving physical movement by the user. There were no statistically significant differences in the results of the task using the two types of interaction. Furthermore, statistically significant differences were not found in relation to gender. The correlations between scores were obtained using the MnemoCity task and a traditional procedure for assessing spatial short-term memory. Those results revealed that the type of interaction used did not affect the performance of children in the MnemoCity task.
Subject(s)
Memory, Short-Term/physiology , Spatial Memory/physiology , Task Performance and Analysis , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Male , Mental Recall , Neuropsychological Tests , User-Computer InterfaceABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Glucocorticoid functions are markedly impaired in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitor roflumilast N-oxide (RNO) is the active metabolite of roflumilast approved as a treatment to reduce the risk of exacerbations in patients with severe COPD. OBJECTIVE: We sought to characterize the differential effects of RNO versus corticosteroids and their potential additive/synergistic effect in neutrophils from patients with COPD, thus providing scientific rationale for the combination of roflumilast with corticosteroids in the clinic. METHODS: Peripheral blood neutrophils were isolated from patients with COPD (n = 32), smokers (n = 7), and healthy nonsmokers (n = 25). Levels of IL-8, matrix metallopeptidase 9 (MMP-9), and biomarkers of glucocorticoid resistance were determined by using ELISA and RT-PCR. Neutrophils were incubated with dexamethasone (0.1 nmol/L to 1 µmol/L), RNO (0.1 nmol/L to 1 µmol/L), or the combination of 1 nmol/L RNO plus 10 nmol/L DEX and stimulated with LPS (1 µg/mL) or cigarette smoke extract 5%; levels of IL-8, MMP-9, and other biomarkers were measured at the end of the incubation period. RESULTS: Peripheral neutrophils from patients with COPD showed a primed phenotype with an increased basal release of IL-8 and MMP-9 and expressed a corticosteroid resistance molecular profile characterized by an increase in phosphoinositide 3-kinase δ, macrophage migration inhibitory factor, and glucocorticoid receptor ß expression and a decrease in HDAC activity and mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase 1 expression. RNO demonstrated robust anti-inflammatory effects on neutrophils from patients with COPD, reversing their resistance to corticosteroids. The combination of RNO and dexamethasone showed additive/synergistic effects, which were consistent with the reversal of corticosteroid-resistant molecular markers by RNO. CONCLUSION: RNO reverses corticosteroid resistance and shows strong anti-inflammatory effects alone or in combination with corticosteroids on neutrophils from patients with COPD.
Subject(s)
Adrenal Cortex Hormones/pharmacology , Aminopyridines/pharmacology , Benzamides/pharmacology , Dexamethasone/pharmacology , Drug Resistance/drug effects , Neutrophils/drug effects , Phosphodiesterase 4 Inhibitors/pharmacology , Aged , Biomarkers/metabolism , Complex Mixtures/isolation & purification , Complex Mixtures/pharmacology , Cyclopropanes/pharmacology , Drug Synergism , Female , Gene Expression/drug effects , Histone Deacetylases/metabolism , Humans , Interleukin-8/metabolism , Intramolecular Oxidoreductases/metabolism , Lipopolysaccharides/pharmacology , Macrophage Migration-Inhibitory Factors/metabolism , Male , Matrix Metalloproteinase 9/metabolism , Middle Aged , Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Phosphatases/metabolism , Neutrophils/metabolism , Neutrophils/pathology , Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases/metabolism , Primary Cell Culture , Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/metabolism , Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/pathology , Nicotiana/chemistryABSTRACT
RATIONALE: Drug addiction is a multifactorial disorder resulting from an interaction between genetic and environmental factors, and negative and positive environmental conditions may increase or reduce, respectively, vulnerability to drug addiction. OBJECTIVES: The influence of different social experiences on the acquisition, extinction, and reinstatement of a cocaine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) was evaluated. METHODS: In experiment 1, adolescent and adult male OF1 mice housed under four different conditions (grouped, isolated, crowded, and cohabitating with a female) were conditioned with 50, 12.5, or 3.125 mg/kg of cocaine. All mice underwent extinction sessions until the CPP was extinguished. The effects of cocaine priming injections on the reinstatement of CPP were then evaluated. In experiment 2, the effect of different social experiences on the maintenance and reinstatement of cocaine-CPP in adult mice was studied. RESULTS: Although housing conditions did not affect the acquisition of cocaine-CPP, it did modify reinstatement after extinction. Adolescent mice living in crowded conditions or cohabitating with a female did not present reinstatement after cocaine priming. Similarly, neither isolated adult mice nor adults cohabitating with a female presented reinstatement. In grouped adult mice, isolation after acquisition of the CPP and social defeat before reinstatement increased the vulnerability to reinstatement induced by cocaine priming. Conversely, both exposure to females and a brief social interaction undermined cocaine-induced reinstatement. CONCLUSIONS: Social experiences modify vulnerability to reinstatement, acting as prevention or risk factors in the development of drug addiction.
Subject(s)
Cocaine-Related Disorders/psychology , Cocaine/pharmacology , Conditioning, Operant/drug effects , Narcotics/pharmacology , Social Environment , Animals , Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Dose-Response Relationship, Drug , Extinction, Psychological/drug effects , Female , Male , Mice , Mice, Inbred Strains , Recurrence , Risk FactorsABSTRACT
Psychostimulant drugs such as cocaine have profound and long-lasting neurobiological effects, which may affect anxiety or social behaviors. These actions could be greater when cocaine is administered during a developmental period such as adolescence. The present work attempts to further clarify the long-lasting effects of cocaine administration on mice, examining three major variables: age; pattern of drug administration; and housing conditions. Adolescent (postnatal day 26) or early adult mice (postnatal day 46) were exposed to a daily or binge cocaine administration and 15 days later their behavior was evaluated, the mice being housed either in isolation or in groups during this stage. After a period free of drug, the behaviors evaluated were: spontaneous and cocaine-induced motor activity; anxiety, using the elevated plus maze; the social profile, assessed in a social interaction test. Daily cocaine administration increased avoidance and flee in isolated adolescent-treated mice and decreased social contacts in those which were grouped. On the other hand, the binge pattern modified the anxiety of the grouped adolescent-treated mice evidenced by the increase in time spent on the open arms of the plus maze. An increase in spontaneous and cocaine-induced motor activity was shown in animals after a daily pre-treatment. The results are discussed in terms of presenting cocaine-induced behavioral changes within a specific temporal window and depending on the three variables studied.
Subject(s)
Aging/psychology , Anxiety/psychology , Cocaine/pharmacology , Animals , Cocaine/administration & dosage , Cocaine-Related Disorders/psychology , Dose-Response Relationship, Drug , Interpersonal Relations , Male , Mice , Motor Activity/drug effectsABSTRACT
Cocaine administration in paired male mice decreases social contacts as well as increases avoidance and flee elements. As dopamine (DA) and glutamate seem to be involved in some of cocaine's effects, an attempt was made to assess whether a range of associated receptors influenced the social impacts of this drug of abuse. The NMDA antagonist memantine (10 and 40 mg/kg); the AMPA antagonist CNQX (1 and 20 mg/kg); the DA release inhibitor CGS 10746b (2 and 8 mg/kg): the DA D1 antagonist SCH 23390 (0.05 and 0.5 mg/kg); and the DA D2/D3 antagonist raclopride (0.03 and 0.3 mg/kg) were administered prior to 25 mg/kg of cocaine and behaviour was evaluated during an encounter between an experimental and a standard opponent in a neutral cage for 10 min. Memantine reverts cocaine-induced social withdrawal and the increase in avoidance and flee, CNQX being effective only in these latter actions. On the other hand, SCH 23390 counteracts the social as well as the defensive action of cocaine, raclopride being effective only in blocking the cocaine-induced increase in avoidance and flee behaviours. In conclusion, although both neurotransmitter systems are involved in the effects of cocaine on social behaviour, NMDA and D1DA receptors seem to have an important role.
Subject(s)
Cocaine/pharmacology , Receptors, Dopamine/physiology , Receptors, Glutamate/physiology , Animals , Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Male , Mice , Receptors, Dopamine/drug effects , Receptors, Glutamate/drug effects , Social IsolationABSTRACT
We studied the helminth communities in 6 sympatric species of Ardeidae (Ixobrychus minutus (Linnaeus, 1766), Nycticorax nycticorax (Linnaeus, 1758), Bubulcus ibis (Linnaeus, 1758), Egretta garzetta (Linnaeus, 1766), Ardea cinerea (Linnaeus, 1758), and Ardea purpurea (Linnaeus, 1766)) from "La Albufera de Valencia," Spain. The survey revealed 13 species of helminth parasites: 5 digeneans, 2 cestodes, and 6 nematodes. The component helminth communities of the Ardeidae examined are depauperate and conform to the pattern typically found in isolationist communities, probably because of their high trophic dependence on a few prey species. Evenness was positively correlated with richness and abundance, but host body weight was not correlated with the number of helminth species or with the total number of helminths. Ardea cinerea is more heavily infected than E. garzetta by Apharyngostrigea cornu, and B. ibis is more heavily infected than both Ardea cinerea and E. garzetta by Desportesius spinulatus. Apharyngostrigea cornu was positively associated with Desmidocercella numidica and D. spinulatus in A. cinerea.
