Background: Detection of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) in acute ischemic stroke patients poses diagnostic challenge. The aim of this study was to predict the presence of PAF by means of 12-lead ECG in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Our hypothesis was that P-wave dispersion (Pd) might be a useful marker in predicting PAF in patients with acute ischemic stroke.Methods: 12-lead resting ECGs, 24-hour Holter recordings and echocardiograms of 400 patients were analyzed retrospectively. PAF was detected in 40 patients on 24-hour Holter monitoring. Forty out of 360 age and gender matched patients without PAF were randomly chosen and assigned as the control group. Demographics, P-wave characteristics and echocardiographic findings of the patients with and without PAF were compared.Results: Maximum P-wave duration (p=0.002), Pd (p<0.001) and left atrium diameter (p=0.04) were significantly higher in patients with PAF when compared to patients without PAF. However, in binary logistic regression analysis Pd was the only independent predictor of PAF. The cut-off value of Pd for the detection of PAF was 57.5 milliseconds (msc). Area under the curve was 0.80 (p<0.001). On a single 12-lead ECG, a value higher than 57.5 msc predicted the presence of PAF with a sensitivity of 80% and a specificity of 73%.Conclusion: Pd on a single 12-lead ECG obtained within 24 hours of an acute ischemic stroke might help to predict PAF and reduce the risk of recurrent strokes.
Eleven (18.3%) of 60 patients were diagnosed with delirium, and the majority (n=8, 72.7%) was the hypoactive type. Delirious and non-delirious patients had similar demographic and clinical features. Delirious patients had significantly higher lengths of hospital stay, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) at admission and discharge compared to non-delirious patients. In addition, there was no significant statistical difference between delirious and non-delirious patients with AIS in respect of levels of TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-18, BDNF and NSE. This study suggests that delirium is not scarce in patients with AIS admitted to the non-intensive stroke unit, and that delirium developing after AIS seems not to be associated with serum TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-18, BDNF and NSE but is associated with length of hospital stay and stroke severity.
Background: Increased interest in the relationship between affective disorder and long-term health consequences has generated recent examinations of depression and stroke. Observations suggest that depressive disorder is associated with abnormal physiological and immunological responses and a resultant increase in inflammatory markers. Given the high prevalence of stroke and associated costs for the community, it is important to understand the mechanisms that may impact on the outcome to achieve the best possible prognosis. Aims: The view that inflammatory factors contribute to depression is predicated on findings that circulating cytokines and other inflammatory factors are increased in depressed patients. Therefore, it has been hypothesized that inflammation could be one of the mechanisms by which depression increases risk for ischemic stroke. Our aim was to determine whether there is any relationship between major depression and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), IL-18, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Study Design: This was as a cross-sectional design. Materials and Methods: This study has a cross-sectional design, and it was conducted in Necmettin Erbakan University, the Meram Faculty of Medicine in Konya, Turkey, between 2014 and 2015. Fifty-three AIS patients admitted to the hospital within the first 24 h after stroke onset were recruited. Major depression was ascertained by means of the structured clinical interview for the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, Fourth Edition/Clinical Version. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to measure the serum levels of TNF-α, IL-1 β, IL-18, BDNF, and NSE at admission. Results: A total of 53 patients with a mean age of 65.9 years were recruited. Of these patients, 17 (32.1%) had major depression. Depressive and nondepressive patients had similar demographical and clinical features. There was no significant statistical difference between depressive and nondepressive patients with AIS with respect to levels of TNF-α, IL-1 β, IL-18, BDNF, and NSE. Conclusion: This study suggests that in patients who have experienced AIS, there is no significant relationship between major depression and basal proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1 β, IL-18), BDNF, and NSE.
ÖZETMethanol is a toxin with rare but serious effects on the central nervous system. It may cause severe visual dysfunction and mortality. This study presents the case of a 44-year-old man admitted to our clinic with bilateral amaurosis which developed after dental intervention for gingivitis. The patient was conscious and presented with stomach ache, nausea, vomiting, weakness, imbalance, and bilateral amaurosis; methanol poisoning was diagnosed. Upon examination, the absence of light perception in the eye and bilateral weakness in light reflexes were detected. Visually-evoked potentials (P100) could not be obtained. Hyper-intense lesions with bilateral putaminal localisation were observed on magnetic resonance imaging and bilateral pupil oedema was observed by fundus photography. The patient was treated with methyl prednisolone and intravenous vitamin B1. On the fifth day after admission, fluctuations in visual findings were observed, and light reflex loss and pupillary dilatation developed. Upon examination one and six months later, bilateral (total) amaurosis and bilateral optic atrophy were detected. This case demonstrates bilateral putaminal involvement after exposure to a very low dose of methanol.
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