Increased Cardio-ankle Vascular Index Values in Migraine Patients With Aura.

Patients with migraine with aura are at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. There are limited data on arterial stiffness in migraine patients with aura. The present study evaluated arterial stiffness in these patients using the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI). This prospective study included 50 patients with migraine with aura (43 female, mean age 38.9 ± 9.9 years). The patient group was matched for age and gender with 50 healthy individuals with no history of migraine (43 female, mean age 39.3 ± 10.3 years). All patients and control subjects underwent a comprehensive clinical evaluation by an experienced neurologist and were interviewed about their headache histories. There was no significant difference in baseline demographic characteristics and echocardiographic parameters between migraine with aura patients and the control group. Both right and left CAVI values were significantly higher in the patients with migraine with aura (6.5 ± 1.2 vs 6.1 ± 0.7, P = .043 and 6.6 ± 1.2 vs 6.1 ± 0.7, P = .009, respectively). Arterial stiffness is an important mediator of cardiovascular diseases. We found that CAVI, a novel marker of the arterial stiffness, is increased in patients with migraine with aura.

Investigation of the relationship between serum irisin level in the idiopathic restless legs syndrome: Could be a marker independent of physical activity?

INTRODUCTION: Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common but underdiagnosed neurological syndrome. It is characterized by the feeling of discomfort and desire to move, especially in the lower extremities, which often occurs at night, and the cure or relief of symptoms with movement. Irisin is a hormonelike polypeptide that was first identified in 2012, weighs 22 kDa, consists of 163 amino acids, and is mainly synthesized in muscle. Its synthesis increases with exercise. Here in this study, we planned to investigate the relationship among serum irisin level, physical activity, lipid profile, and RLS. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 35 patients with idiopathic RLS and 35 volunteers were included in the study. Then, venous blood was taken from the participants in the morning after 12 h of night fasting. RESULTS: The mean value of serum irisin level was 16.9 ± 14.1 ng/mL in the case group and 5.1 ± 5.9 ng/mL in the control group, which was statistically quite significant (p < .001). A significant efficiency (under the curve area 0.886 [0.804-0.967]) of irisin value was observed in the differentiation of patients in the case and control groups. DISCUSSION: Serum irisin level was significantly higher in the case group than in the control group. In conclusion, we suggest that irisin may play a role in the pathophysiology of RLS independently of the intensity and duration of physical activity and anthropometric data, such as body weight, body mass index, and waist/hip ratio.

Demographic characteristics and neurological comorbidity of patients with COVID-19.

ABSTRACT: The COVID-19 infection that started in the Wuhan Province of the People's Republic of China and has now spread throughout the world is not limited to the respiratory system, but also causes other systemic symptoms through viremia. Recent data show that the central and peripheral nervous system involvement is particularly substantial. Thus, the present study aims to investigate the current neurological comorbidities and symptoms of patients with COVID-19 who were followed up by our clinic physicians.

The Relationship Among Bone Mineral Density, Bone Biomarkers and Vitamin D Levels in Patients with Parkinson's Disease.

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD) is the most common age-related neurodegenerative movement disorder. It causes a decrease and deceleration in movements. It may also lead to loss of bone mineral density, vi-tamin D deficiency, falls and fractures due to various factors. As indicated in our study, determining the prevalence of osteopenia and osteoporosis in IPD is important to determine complications. METHODS: Thirty patients with IPD and 30 age-matched control subjects were included in the study. The bone mineral density (BMD) measurements of the participants were taken from the lumbar spine (L1-4) and double femur regions using the dual energy X-ray absorptiometry device. Serum 25 (OH) vitamin D, alkaline phosphatase, parathormone, osteocalcin, prolidase and urine hydroxyproline levels were measured. RESULTS: The femur total BMD and serum 25 (OH) vitamin D levels were lower in the patients with IPD than in the control group (p > 0.05). The serum prolidase and urinary hydroxyproline levels were higher in the IPD group relative to the control group (p < 0.05). The frequency of osteoporosis and osteopenia was significantly higher in the IPD group than in the control group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with Parkinson's disease tend to have lower vitamin D levels than those with a similar age without Parkinson's disease. Vitamin D levels are usually associated with BMD in people with Parkinson's disease, but administering vitamin D does not improve BMD. Cross-sectional studies suggest a correlation between vitamin D levels and the severity of symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Decreased exposure to sunlight due to immobilisation and reduced vitamin D intake by diet may lead to vitamin D deficiency and low BMD. There is a negative correlation among the duration of disease, disease severity, number of falls, parathormone level and serum vitamin D level in people with Parkinson's disease. Consequently, vitamin D levels may be low in Parkinson's disease patients. Therefore, patients with Parkinson's disease should be checked for vitamin D and osteoporosis by considering the risk of hip fracture, fall from a height and high risk of osteoporosis.

Demographic characteristics and neurological comorbidity of patients with COVID-19

SUMMARY ABSTRACT The COVID-19 infection that started in the Wuhan Province of the People's Republic of China and has now spread throughout the world is not limited to the respiratory system, but also causes other systemic symptoms through viremia. Recent data show that the central and peripheral nervous system involvement is particularly substantial. Thus, the present study aims to investigate the current neurological comorbidities and symptoms of patients with COVID-19 who were followed up by our clinic physicians.

RESUMO RESUMO A infecção de COVID-19 que começou na província de Wuhan, na República Popular da China, e já se espalhou por todo o mundo não se limita ao sistema respiratório, mas também causa outros sintomas sistêmicos através de viremia. Dados recentes mostram que seus efeitos no sistema nervoso central e periférico são particularmente significativos. Assim, o presente estudo tem como objetivo investigar as atuais comorbidades e sintomas neurológicos de pacientes com COVID-19 que foram acompanhados pelos médicos da nossa clínica.

An investigation of pulse transit time as a blood pressure measurement method in patients undergoing carotid artery stenting.

INTRODUCTION: Pulse transit time (PTT) is the duration that a pulse wave takes to travel between two different arterial points, and it may be useful in estimating blood pressure. The aim of this study was to investigate the PTT during carotid artery stenting, as well as its value in blood pressure estimation. METHOD: Thirty-four patients with critical carotid artery stenosis were enrolled in this study. The carotid PTT from the onset of the R-wave of electrocardiography to the pulse waveform at the carotid artery, obtained invasively during carotid artery catheterization, was measured. The carotid PTT was measured before and after stenting of the internal carotid artery. RESULTS: The mean age was 70.4±8.0 years among the 34 patients enrolled (eight female patients, 21.9%). Measurements were obtained before and after carotid artery stenting. The heart rate (85.9±15.9 vs. 76.9±12.5 bpm, P<0.01), systolic blood pressure (162.8±28.6 vs. 126.0±31.7 mmHg, P<0.001), diastolic blood pressure (87.7±17.9 vs. 76.9±20.0 mmHg, P<0.01), and mean blood pressure (112.7±18.6 vs. 93.2±22.7 mmHg, P<0.001) were significantly decreased, whereas the carotid PTT (0.06±0.012 s vs. 0.07±0.012 s, P<0.001) was significantly increased after carotid stenting. The difference between the PTTs was negatively correlated with the systolic blood pressure (r=-0.35, P=0.02) and diastolic blood pressure (r=-0.4, P=0.01). CONCLUSION: After carotid stenting, the PTT increases significantly because of the lowering of the blood pressure. However, the relationship is not strong enough for the PTT to be used for blood pressure estimation.