Elena Purcaru, Jude Kings, Mavis Ayer, Christopher Kipps, Ashwin Arnold Pinto
{"title":"Personal health records: a practical guide for neurologists.","authors":"Elena Purcaru, Jude Kings, Mavis Ayer, Christopher Kipps, Ashwin Arnold Pinto","doi":"10.1136/pn-2024-004443","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2024-004443","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Digital tools like smartphone applications and wearable health devices support people to play a greater role in their own care and that of others. Personal health records (PHRs) allow users to store information about their health online, to view records held by healthcare services and to add their own information. PHRs have the potential to help people manage their well-being, improve patient care and provide new ways to offer care. This article describes the benefits that PHRs bring to healthcare, their challenges and the practical steps for establishing a PHR platform to connect neurologists with their patients, based on 4 years of PHR experience in our neurology unit.</p>","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"438-442"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143442436","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
James Groves, Demot H Mallon, Anouk Borg, Nathalie Zaidman, Thomas Foltynie, Patricia Limousin, Arpan R Mehta, L V Prasad Korlipara
{"title":"Myelopathic motor symptoms overlaying Parkinson's disease.","authors":"James Groves, Demot H Mallon, Anouk Borg, Nathalie Zaidman, Thomas Foltynie, Patricia Limousin, Arpan R Mehta, L V Prasad Korlipara","doi":"10.1136/pn-2025-004546","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2025-004546","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Parkinson's disease (PD) may increase the risk of degenerative cervical myelopathy, causing overlaying myelopathic motor symptoms that can be challenging to identify. However, this diagnosis must not be missed, given the risk of profound and lasting disability and the benefit of surgical intervention. We describe a fortnight in which three patients with PD were admitted to our inpatient movement disorders service with degenerative cervical myelopathy; each highlighting a distinct learning point regarding diagnosis or management. First, that careful examination is crucial, and clinicians should always consider degenerative cervical myelopathy in a patient with PD whose mobility has dramatically reduced. Second, patients may need pharmacological suppression of cervical dyskinesias after surgery to prevent ongoing injury and to promote healing. Third, medical factors, such as B12 deficiency, with the potential to exacerbate myelopathic effects, should be corrected.</p>","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"479-482"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143732344","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Joshua Chin Ern Ooi, Lip Sheng Tan, Yun Xiu Yong, Maizatul Idazarina Mahadi, Yi Lin Tang, Jack Son Wee, Sheila Ai Mei Ong, Shirley Lee, Presaad Pillai, Yuen Kang Chia
{"title":"Adult-onset Rasmussen's encephalitis with anti-AMPA receptor antibodies.","authors":"Joshua Chin Ern Ooi, Lip Sheng Tan, Yun Xiu Yong, Maizatul Idazarina Mahadi, Yi Lin Tang, Jack Son Wee, Sheila Ai Mei Ong, Shirley Lee, Presaad Pillai, Yuen Kang Chia","doi":"10.1136/pn-2025-004520","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2025-004520","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A woman aged 49 years developed focal seizures, with right hemispheric focal slowing on electroencephalograph and right hemisphere focal cortical hyperintensities with subtle atrophy on MR brain scan. Cerebrospinal fluid identified anti-α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptor auto-antibodies, but her condition did not respond to immunotherapy for AMPA receptor encephalitis. Subsequent MR brain scan showed striking progressive unihemispheric atrophy, consistent with Rasmussen's encephalitis; she made a good functional recovery with cyclophosphamide. This case highlights the diagnostic and treatment challenges surrounding adult-onset Rasmussen's encephalitis. The unusual co-occurrence of anti-AMPA receptor autoantibody positivity emphasises the need for careful interpretation of such associations. It is important to think of Rasmussen's encephalitis as a spectrum of diseases with shared T-cell-mediated neuronal loss pathways but varying humoral components to understand this complex disease better.</p>","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"475-478"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143765363","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Neurological aspects of drug misuse.","authors":"Robin S Howard, Paul Holmes, Paul Dargan","doi":"10.1136/pn-2023-003796","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2023-003796","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The misuse of illicit drugs and prescription medications may cause neurological complications from overdose, withdrawal and long-term chronic misuse. Drug-use disorder has become particularly important and complex because of different patterns of presentation associated with new psychoactive substances and the growing misuse of opioids, synthetic cannabinoids and stimulants. We review worldwide demographic data of drug-use disorder and discuss the individual classes of agents, newer developments relating to understanding the mechanisms of action and the patterns of administration, usage, toxicity and withdrawal. We consider the difficulties in assessment and the specific acute syndromes of toxicity that present with neurological manifestations. We review the neurological patterns of longer-term complications and consider the effects of drug misuse-related trauma, infection, seizures, stroke, toxic leucoencephalopathy, cognitive impairment, movement disorders and neuromuscular complications. The neurological consequences of drug-use disorder disproportionately affect the young and can have devastating effects on innocent lives. It is essential that neurologists recognise acute toxicity early and understand the longer-term consequences of drug-use disorder.</p>","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"411-421"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144162764","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Subarachnoid neurocysticercosis presenting as a sudden severe headache.","authors":"Joseph John Benes, Isha Snehal, Michael Pichler","doi":"10.1136/pn-2024-004411","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2024-004411","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A 46-year-old man, an immigrant from Central America, presented to the emergency department after a motor vehicle collision. He had developed a progressive headache over the previous 48 hours, which had suddenly worsened while driving, causing him to crash. There was no significant head trauma. Clinical and radiological findings prompted a workup for atypical subarachnoid haemorrhage.</p>","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"452-454"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143626345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Precision terminology to reduce cognitive bias in neuro-ophthalmology.","authors":"Susan P Mollan","doi":"10.1136/pn-2025-004560","DOIUrl":"10.1136/pn-2025-004560","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":39343,"journal":{"name":"PRACTICAL NEUROLOGY","volume":" ","pages":"394-395"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143812640","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}