Factors influencing mortality in ALS are clearly multifactorial. The ability to determine these factors and subsequently modify them could be of therapeutic significance in ALS. The large EPIC cohort recently established that a higher body mass index may be neuroprotective, i.e. reduce mortality in ALS, which was evident in both males and females. This association […]
Month: March 2013
Cortical atrophy in ALS related to cognitive dysfunction. Food for thought?
Cortical atrophy, as assessed by novel volumetric MRI techniques, have revealed inconsistent results in ALS. Specifically, while cortical thinning, predominantly within the motor/frontal lobe regions, have been reported by some, absence of atrophy has been reported by others. Mioshi and colleagues elegantly demonstrate a potential explanation for such discordant MRI findings. Namely, ALS patients with […]
Seizures, strokes, and plane flights
Planes and an ailing brain…. A high ranking politician got off a longhaul plane flight and promptly had a seizure. Made me wonder what we know about this type of presentation. Certain types of illness – especially heart attacks and blood clots – have been linked to air travel aka economy class syndrome. But […]
The First Week
Dr Susanna Park from the Institute of Neurology, UK critically considers Stroke and the First Week The focus of the March issue of JNNP is stroke, highlighting a range of research assessing risk factors, prognosis, treatment and management. In this timely issue, Kauranen and colleagues1 present a study which emphasises the importance of cognitive function […]