[Assessment of the spatial memory in patients suffering from generalized epilepsy]. / Evaluation de la mémoire spatiale chez des patients souffrant d'épilepsie généralisée.

This study aimed to assess eventual disturbances of spatial memory in patients suffering from generalized epilepsy in order to better grasp these patients' attitudes so as to keep track their neuropsychological accompaniments. 70 patients presenting generalized epilepsy have taken part in spatial memory test. The test consists in studying the arrangement, the designation and the evocation of images in the course of spatial disposition learning test. Over the 70 patients, 51% of the cases passed the test with performances similar to witnesses, 29% passed the test with late learning. Eventually 20% of patients failed to the test.

[Trypanosomiasis: determination of groups of patients from clinical and electroencephalographic data]. / Trypanosomiase: détermination de groupes de patients à partir de données cliniques et électroencéphalographiques.

Data constituted from clinical and waking electroencephalographic signs in 104 patients at meningoencephalitis stage of trypanosomiasis were treated by way of a correspondence analysis in order to determine clinical profiles. Three profiles were identified. The first one, encountered in patients with minor clinical disturbances and slightly modified waking electroencephalographic patterns is suggestive of a cerebral involvement stage onset. The second one, observed in patients with vigilance disturbances, behavioral and motor impairment, and highly abnormal EEG tracing is indicative of a more severe encephalitis stage. The third one, obvious in patients with EEG sharp waves organized in a more or less recurring fashion and accompanied by epileptic seizures is consistent with an acute cerebromeningitis.

Evaluation de la part des boissons alcooliques autochtones dans la consommation d'alcool en Cote d'Ivoire : resultats preliminaires

Une etude epidemiologique et preliminaire de la consommation d'alcool a ete effectuee chez 314 humains adultes en Cote d'Ivoire. Les resultats montrent que l'alcool de palme; un alcool local de fabrication clandestine appele koutoukou et les bieres industrielles sont les alcools les plus consommes. Les donnees obtenues sur l'echantillon; indiquent que les alcools de fabrication locale; comme le vin de palme et le dolo (une biere de mil ou de sorgho); sont aussi tres apprecies

Effects of an acute dose of palm alcohol on normal brain functioning: an auditory, event-related-potential study.

The effects of an acute and high dose of palm alcohol (900 mg/kg bodyweight) on brain functioning were investigated in 10 healthy, non-alcoholic men. Each was given randomly-interspaced, paired, frequent standard (80%) and rare target auditory stimuli and asked to detect and signal the target tone by pressing a push button. These brain function tests were carried out before (control) and 1 and 4 h after the subjects began drinking the alcohol. During each experimental session, late, event-related-potential (ERP) components were recorded at the central midline scalp location (Cz). At both times after alcoholization, contingent negative variations and late auditory ERP were lower than those recorded during the control session. Maximal amplitude reduction for N1 and P3 waves was seen 240 min after ingesting alcohol. Reaction times were not significantly longer than those recorded pre-alcoholization but performances were lower at both times post-alcoholization. The results are consistent with the ERP changes reported in subjects under acute ethanol intoxication but they are more pronounced and probably reflect a momentary disruption of central processes rather than sensory impairment at the peripheral level.

[Uniform processing of sensory-motor information and match/mismatch process impairment in man caused by chronic palm alcohol consumption]. / Traitement uniforme de l'information sensorimotrice et perturbation des processus d'appariement non appariement chez l'homme sous imprégnation chronique à l'alcool de palme.

The late components of the event-related potential (ERP) were recorded during a Go/No-Go task from 21 alcoholics (with chronic palm alcohol intoxication) divided in 3 groups of seven (abstinent alcoholics men, abstinent alcoholic women, and alcoholic men) and 14 normal adult volunteers divided into 2 groups (control men, and control women). The subjects were submitted to paired auditory stimuli and were assigned to detect and respond by pressing a push button to a rarely occurring imperative stimulus (20%). Latency of the late components of the ERP elicited both by target and standard imperative stimuli was significantly delayed in three alcoholic groups compared to the controls. The amplitude of P200 and P300 components was also decreased in alcoholics, which displayed the same middle line scalp distribution of P300 amplitudes regardless of the imperative stimulus class: target or standard. These findings agree with the supposition that match/mismatch processes are impaired in subjects with chronic palm alcohol intoxication, and that they have difficulties in evaluating the significance of stimuli.

Infeccao do parceiro sexual pelo papilomavirus humano / Partner infection by human papillomavirus

Foram examinados 60 parceiros sexuais, de mulheres diagnosticadas como portadoras de infeccao genital pelo papilomavirus, sob protocolo de investigacao. O objetivo era identificar colposcopicamente, lesoes acetobrancas na genitalia externa masculina, biopsia-las e estuda-las histopatologicamente. Predominava como sinal patognomonico, a coilocitose celular. A biopsia foi positiva em 77,1 por cento e negativa em 22,9 por cento. Os resultados da pesquisa fecham a hipotese de que o parceiro sexual masculino e, de fato, um elemento de risco, agindo como transmissor de infeccao genital pelo papilomavirus humano.