| 1. |
- Brooks, D J, et al.
(författare)
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Treatment of end-of-dose wearing-off in Parkinson's disease: Stalevo (R) (levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone) and levodopa/DDCI given in combination with Comtess (R)/Comtan (R) (Entacapone) provide equivalent improvements in symptom control superior to that of traditional levodopa/DDCI treatment
- 2005
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Ingår i: European Neurology. - : S. Karger AG. - 1421-9913 .- 0014-3022. ; 53:4, s. 197-202
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of the new optimised levoclopa, Stalevo(R) (levoclopa, carbidopa and entacapone) in patients with Parkinson's disease experiencing end-of-close wearing-off. Treatment with Stalevo was compared to treatment with traditional immediate-release levodopa and dopa-decarboxylase inhibitor (DDCl) formulations along with adjunct entacapone (Comtess(R)/Comtan(R)). A European, open, parallel-group, active treatment-controlled phase IIIb study evaluating 176 patients randomised to switch from their current regimen of levodopa/DDCl to either an equivalent dose of Stalevo or levodopa/DDCl plus entacapone. After 6 weeks, treatments were assessed using the Clinical Global Impression of Change, the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale and a Motor Fluctuations Questionnaire. Over 70% of patients in both the Stalevo, and adjunct entacapone arms felt that they were clinically improved and over 80% experienced a reduction in fluctuations. Although there was no significant difference between Stalevo and levodopa/DDCl plus entacapone with regard to motor improvement and side effects, 81% of patients stated that they preferred treatment with Stalevo compared with taking two separate tablets (i.e. levodopa/DDCl and entacapone). Stalevo was well tolerated and safe when substituted for levodopa DDCl preparations.
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| 2. |
- Cronberg, Tobias, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term neurological outcome after cardiac arrest and therapeutic hypothermia.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Resuscitation. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-1570 .- 0300-9572. ; 80, s. 1119-1123
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AIM OF THE STUDY: To analyse the neurological status of survivors after cardiac arrest (CA) treated with hypothermia. METHODS: We prospectively included all patients with CA treated with hypothermia at intensive care units (ICU) in two university hospitals and one regional hospital. All adult survivors at 6 months after CA, n=48, were invited for neurological follow-up and 43 accepted. History, clinical status, ability testing and questionnaires were administered to screen for difficulties, including Assessment of Motor and Process Skills, Neurobehavioral Cognitive Status Examination, Frontal Lobe Assessment Battery, EQ-VAS quality of life scale, Skåne Sleep Index, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Rating Scale, Self-reported Montgomery and Astrand Depression Rating Scale, Global Deterioration Scale, Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test, and the Cerebral Performance Categories (CPC). RESULTS: No patient was found to be in a chronic vegetative state and all patients were living at home, one with extensive help. Thirty-six patients were in CPC1 at follow-up, and some degree of neurological sequelae was found in 40 patients, but was mild in all but 3. Three patients had no subjective complaints, nor could any deficits be detected. Initial defects improved over-time. Short-term memory loss, executive frontal lobe dysfunction along with mild depression and sleep rhythm disturbances were the most common findings. CONCLUSIONS: Mild cognitive impairment is common following hypothermia-treated cardiac arrest but has little effect on activities of daily living or quality of life.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Ekbom, Karl, et al.
(författare)
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Restless legs - vanligt sjukdomstillstånd som ofta missas. Möjligheter till framgångsrik behandling finns idag
- 2006
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Ingår i: Läkartidningen. - 0023-7205. ; 103:4, s. 207-211
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is characterized by intense restlessness and unpleasant creeping sensations deep inside the lower legs. The symptoms appear when the limbs are at rest and are worst in the evening and at night. They force the patients to keep moving their legs, and sometimes to get out of bed and wander about. Periodic limb movements of the extremities (PLM) are common during sleep thus causing severe reduction in sleep efficiency. In many cases RLS may be an inherited disorder and there is a common association with iron deficiency anemia and chronic renal failure. The pathophysiology of RLS is multifactorial and incompletely understood. Results of dopaminergic treatment and recent data by advanced neuroimaging suggest that symptoms of RLS may be generated in the central nervous system, notably in substantia nigra, putamen and by rhythmically active nuclei in the thalamus, brainstem and cerebellum. RLS is a very common disorder but has not seldom been under-diagnosed and poorly treated for many years in general practice. At present there is a wide range of treatment options including levodopa, dopamine agonists, opioids, antiepileptic drugs and benzodiazepines.
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| 5. |
- Geser, F, et al.
(författare)
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The European Multiple System Atrophy-Study Group (EMSA-SG)
- 2005
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Ingår i: Journal of Neural Transmission. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0300-9564 .- 1435-1463. ; 112:12, s. 1677-1686
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction. The European Multiple System Atrophy-Study Group (EMSA-SG) is an academic network comprising 23 centers across Europe and Israel that has constituted itself already in January 1999. This international forum of established experts under the guidance of the University Hospital of Innsbruck as coordinating center is supported by the 5th framework program of the European Union since March 2001 (QLK6-CT-2000-00661). Objectives. Primary goals of the network include (1) a central Registry for European multiple system atrophy (MSA) patients, (2) a decentralized DNA Bank, (3) the development and validation of the novel Unified MSA Rating Scale (UMSARS), (4) the conduction of a Natural History Study (NHS), and (5) the planning or implementation of interventional therapeutic trials. Methods. The EMSA-SG Registry is a computerized data bank localized at the coordinating centre in Innsbruck collecting diagnostic and therapeutic data of MSA patients. Blood samples of patients and controls are recruited into the DNA Bank. The UMSARS is a novel specific rating instrument that has been developed and validated by the EMSA-SG. The NHS comprises assessments of basic anthropometric data as well as a range of scales including the UMSARS, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), measures of global disability, Red Flag list, MMSE (Mini Mental State Examination), quality of live measures, i.e. EuroQoL 5D (EQ-5D) and Medical Outcome Study Short Form (SF-36) as well as the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). In a subgroup of patients dysautonomic features are recorded in detail using the Queen Square Cardiovascular Autonomic Function Test Battery, the Composite Autonomic Symptom Scale (COMPASS) and measurements of residual urinary volume. Most of these measures are repeated at 6-monthly follow up visits for a total study period of 24 months. Surrogate markers of the disease progression are identified by the EMSA-SG using magnetic resonance and diffusion weighted imaging (MRI and DWI, respectively). Results. 412 patients have been recruited into the Registry so far. Probable MSA-P was the most common diagnosis (49% of cases). 507 patients donated DNA for research. 131 patients have been recruited into the NHS. There was a rapid deterioration of the motor disorder (in particular akinesia) by 26.1% of the UMSARS II, and - to a lesser degree - of activities of daily living by 16.8% of the UMSARS I in relation to the respective baseline scores. Motor progression was associated with low motor or global disability as well as low akinesia or cerebellar subscores at baseline. Mental function did not deteriorate during this short follow up period. Conclusion. For the first time, prospective data concerning disease progression are available. Such data about the natural history and prognosis of MSA as well as surrogate markers of disease process allow planning and implementation of multi-centre phase II/III neuroprotective intervention trials within the next years more effectively. Indeed, a trial on growth hormone in MSA has just been completed, and another on minocycline will be completed by the end of this year.
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| 6. |
- Hagell, Peter, et al.
(författare)
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Measuring fatigue in Parkinson's disease : a psychometric study of two brief generic fatigue questionnaires.
- 2006
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Ingår i: Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. - : Elsevier. - 0885-3924 .- 1873-6513. ; 32:5, s. 420-32
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study evaluated and compared the measurement properties of the 13-item Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue Scale (FACIT-F) and the 9-item Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) in 118 consecutive Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, using traditional and Rasch measurement methodologies. Both questionnaires exhibited excellent data quality and reliability (coefficient alpha>or=0.9), and acceptable rating scale functionality, and both discriminated between fatigued and nonfatigued patients. Factor and Rasch analyses provided general support for unidimensionality of both FACIT-F and FSS, although they do not appear to measure identical aspects of fatigue. No signs of differential item functioning (DIF) were found for the FACIT-F, whereas potential age DIF was detected for two FSS items. These results support the measurement validity of both questionnaires in PD, although the FACIT-F displayed better measurement precision and modest psychometric advantages over the FSS. Availability of psychometrically sound fatigue measures that are applicable across disorders provides a sound basis for advancing the understanding of this common and distressing complaint.
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| 7. |
- Hagell, Peter, et al.
(författare)
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Measuring fatigue in Parkinsons disease: A psychometric study of two brief generic fatigue questionnaires
- 2006
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Ingår i: Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. - : Elsevier BV. - 0885-3924 .- 1873-6513. ; 32:5, s. 420-432
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study evaluated and compared the measurement properties of the 13-item Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue Scale (FACIT-F) and the 9-item Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) in 118 consecutive Parkinsons disease (PD) patients, using traditional and Rasch measurement methodologies. Both questionnaires exhibited excellent data quality and reliability (coefficient alpha greater than= 0.9), and acceptable rating scale functionality, and both discriminated between fatigued and nonfatigued patients. factor and Rasch analyses provided general support for unidimensionality of both FACIT-F and FSS, although they do not appear to measure identical aspects of fatigue. No signs of differential item functioning (DIF) were found for the FACIT-F, whereas potential age DIF, was detected for two FSS items. These results support the measurement validity of both questionnaires in PD, although the FACIT-F displayed better measurement precision and modest psychometric advantages over the FSS. Availability of psychometrically sound fatigue measures that are applicable across disorders provides a sound basis for advancing the understanding of this common and distressing complaint.
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| 8. |
- Koellensperger, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Red flags for multiple system atrophy
- 2008
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Ingår i: Movement Disorders. - : Wiley. - 0885-3185 .- 1531-8257. ; 23:8, s. 1093-1099
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The clinical diagnosis Of Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is fraught with difficulty and there are no pathognomonic features to discriminate the parkinsonian variant (MSA-P) from Parkinson's disease (PD). Besides the poor response to levodopa, and the additional presence of pyramidal or cerebellar signs (ataxia) or autonomic failure as major diagnostic criteria, certain other clinical features known as "red flags" or warning signs may raise the clinical suspicion of MSA. To study the diagnostic role of these features in MSA-P versus PD patients, a standardized red flag check list (RFCL) developed by the European MSA Study Group (EMSA-SG) was administered to 57 patients with probable MSA-P and 116 patients with probable PD diagnosed according to established criteria. Those red flags with a specifity over 95% were selected for further analysis. Factor analysis was applied to reduce the number of red flags. The resulting set was then applied to 17 patients with possible MSA-P who on follow-up fulfilled criteria of probable MSA-P. Red flags were grouped into related categories. With two or more of six red flag categories present specificity was 98.3% and sensitivity was 84.2% in our cohort. When applying these criteria to patients with possible MSA-P, 76.5% of them would have been correctly diagnosed as probable MSA-P 15.9 (+/- 7.0) months earlier than with the Consensus criteria alone. We propose a combination of two out of six red flag categories as additional diagnostic criteria for probable MSA-P. (C) 2008 Movement Disorder Society.
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| 9. |
- Li, Jia-Yi, et al.
(författare)
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Lewy bodies in grafted neurons in subjects with Parkinson's disease suggest host-to-graft disease propagation.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Nature Medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1546-170X .- 1078-8956. ; 14, s. 501-503
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two subjects with Parkinson's disease who had long-term survival of transplanted fetal mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons (11-16 years) developed alpha-synuclein-positive Lewy bodies in grafted neurons. Our observation has key implications for understanding Parkinson's pathogenesis by providing the first evidence, to our knowledge, that the disease can propagate from host to graft cells. However, available data suggest that the majority of grafted cells are functionally unimpaired after a decade, and recipients can still experience long-term symptomatic relief.
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| 10. |
- Midlöv, Patrik, et al.
(författare)
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Medication report reduces number of medication errors when elderly patients are discharged from hospital
- 2008
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Ingår i: PHARMACY WORLD & SCIENCE. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0928-1231 .- 1573-739X. ; 30:1, s. 92-98
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective To investigate whether a Medication Report can reduce the number of medication errors when elderly patients are discharged from hospital. Method We conducted a prospective intervention with retrospective controls on patients at three departments at Lund University Hospital, Sweden that where transferred to primary care. The intervention group, where patients received a Medication Report at discharge, was compared with a control group with patients of the same age, who were not given a Medication Report when discharged from the same ward one year earlier. Main outcome measures The main outcome measure was the number of medication errors when elderly patients were discharged from hospital. Results Among 248 patients in the intervention group 79 (32%) had at least one medication error as compared with 118 (66%) among the 179 patients in the control group. In the intervention group 15% of the patients had errors that were considered to have moderate or high risk of clinical consequences compared with 32% in the control group. The differences were statistically significant (P < 0.001). Conclusion Medication errors are common when elderly patients are discharged from hospital. The Medication Report is a simple tool that reduces the number of medication errors.
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