Clinical neurological manifestations in patients suffering from peptic ulcer disease in the acute phase and in remission

Abstract

Objective — to analyze clinical neurological manifestations in patients suffering from peptic ulcer disease in the acute phase and in remission, based on the findings of a comprehensive clinical neurological, neuropsychological and paraclinical study. Methods and subjects.  84 patients suffering from PUD were comprehensively examined while in the acute phase of the disease and then all 84 were reexamined while in remission. The age range of the patients was from 25 to 60 years. The average age of the patient was 39.90 ± 1.29 years. The examined individuals were destributed into two groups based on whether they presented symptoms of an acute phase or remission of the peptic ulcer disease. The comprehensive examination included: interview and complaint analysis, neurological examination focused on the state of the autonomic nervous system, study of the neuropsychological differences (the trait and state anxiety levels monitoring based on the Spielberg‑Khanin scale, depressive state evaluation using Beck Depression Inventory, self‑perceived health assessment, mood and activity monitoring using the SAN questionnaire, cognitive impairment evaluation using the MMSE scale, assessment of the refocusing speeds and performance distribution using Schulte tables), as well as lab tests and procedures. Results. Most often, subjects complained of headache (74 (88.0 %) in the acute stage and 37 (44.0 %) in remission). The second most common was a complaint of pain in the thoracic spine (69 (82.1 %) and 35 (41.6 %), respectively). Complaints of dizziness, pain in the heart, palpitations, «interruptions» in the heart, paresthesia were often recorded. In 11 (12.4 %) patients with duodenal ulcer in the acute stage experienced episodes of syncopal state, while in the remission stage they were absent. Complaints that indicated the presence of psychoemotional disorders were anxiety, decreased memory and attention, and sleep disturbances. In patients with duodenal ulcer disease we revealed lesions of the central and peripheral nervous system. Central nervous system disorders were manifested in the form of vestibulo‑cerebellar syndrome (in 30 (35.7 %) patients in the acute stage and in 14 (16.6 %) in the remission stage), extrapyramidal disorders (respectively in 10 (11.9 %) and 4 (4.76 %)) and signs of pyramidal dysfunction (37 (44.0 %) and 15 (17.8 %)). Clinical and neurological examination of the peripheral nervous system in 68 (80.9 %) patients with peptic ulcer in the acute stage and in 31 (36.9 %) in the remission stage revealed polyneuropathy syndrome of varying degrees. Signs of polyneuropathy were accompanied by complaints of disorders of the peripheral nervous system (45 (53.5 %) and 15 (17.8 %) cases, respectively). In 27.4 % of patients with peptic ulcer disease in the acute stage of the complaint were absent at all, and only a thorough neurological examination revealed signs of polyneuropathy. In 56 (66.6 %) patients with peptic ulcer disease in the acute stage and 28 (33.3 %) in the remission stage, the morbidity of paravertebral points in the lower thoracic spine was revealed. Conclusions. Having analyzed the data obtained through the interviews, as well as the neurological characteristics of patients with peptic ulcer disease of the duodenum in the acute phase and in remission it was concluded that most of the somatic complaints and neurological manifestations were common in both the acute phase and the remission of the disease. However, all of the identified neurological differences were significantly more common in the acute phase of the disease.