Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Sarcoidosis Presenting As Vocal Cord Palsy: An Unusual Presentation And Literature Review, Mohummad Hassan Raza Raja, Muhammad Abdullah Javed, Ali Bin Sarwar Zubairi

Medical College Documents

We report the case of a 60-year-old woman, presenting with left vocal cord paralysis (VCP). Diagnostic evaluation revealed sarcoidosis to be the underlying pathology. Computed tomography (CT) scans exhibited enlarged subcarinal, pretracheal, and prevascular lymph nodes as the possible mechanism of left VCP through compression of the left recurrent laryngeal nerve. Initial treatment with oral prednisolone and azathioprine led to remission of symptoms; however, tapering of dosage led to relapse of cough without any signs of VCP. The dosage of prednisolone was further boosted, leading to complete remission. A review of literature reveals 20 cases have been reported to date, …

Current Role Of Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy In The Treatment Of Intracranial Tumors, Farhan A. Mirza, Rida Mitha, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim

Section of Neurosurgery

Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) is gaining popularity in the treatment of both primary and secondary intracranial tumors. The goal of LITT is to deliver thermal energy in a predictable, controlled, and minimally invasive fashion. It can be particularly valuable in patients with recurrent tumors who, due to previous radiation or surgery, may have a potentially higher risk of wound breakdown or infection with repeat craniotomy. Deep-seated lesions that are often inaccessible through open approaches (thalamus, hypothalamus, mesial basal temporal lobe, brainstem) may also be suitable targets. The experience and data published thus far on this modality is limited but …

Focal Cortical Dysplasia With Prolonged Ictal Asystole, A Case Report, Ahmad Wali, Fowzia Siddiqui

Section of Neurology

Introduction: Cortical dysplasia carries significant morbidities such as seizures and delayed milestones. Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) causes refractory epilepsy with various seizure types depending on the location and extent of the dysplasia. FCD in the temporal region and the insular cortex may cause ictal bradycardia (IB) and ictal asystole (IA). Video EEG (VEEG) with simultaneous EKG recording can better diagnose these cardiac abnormalities in FCD. We describe a case of refractory epilepsy. The patient's clinical seizures were usually followed by syncope. VEEG revealed frequent seizures some of which were associated with prolonged ictal asystole.
Results: A 15 years old female …

Molybdenum Cofactor Deficiency Causing Neonatal Seizures And Global Developmental Delay, Sundal Aziz, Javeria Raza Alvi, Tipu Sultan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT: Molybdenum cofactor deficiency is a rare degenerative brain disorder with autosomal recessive inheritance. It presents early in neonatal life with seizures, feeding difficulty and spasticity, sometimes misdiagnosed as neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. Neuroimaging findings are consistent with loss of white matter and volume along with cystic encephalomalacic changes. Most of the patients have mutations in the MOCS1 and MOCS2 genes causing imbalance in the sulfur-containing amino acid metabolism leading to progressive neurological damage and early childhood death in majority of cases. We report a case of a 7 months old child, product of non-consanguineous marriage with history of neonatal …

Challenges For Dementia Care And Research In Pakistan, Fatima Siddiqui, Qurat Khan, Mohammad Wasay

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Dementia is a syndrome characterized by a decline in cognition and memory severe enough to interfere with daily life activities and is one of the major causes of disability and dependency in elderly worldwide with Alzheimer’s disease being the most common cause of dementia (1). 703 million individuals (9% of the world’s population) are more than 65 years of age and this number will double by the end of 2050 reaching 1.5 billion (16% of the world’s population) (2). Ageing has been the fastest in Eastern and South Eastern countries (3). Despite being a global health priority, with significant social …

Acute Ischemic Stroke Treatment Barriers In Pakistan, Saima Ahmad, Umair Rashid, Ossama Mansour, Sohail Akhtar

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Worldwide stroke is the second most common cause of death and the third most common cause of disability (1). No large-scale epidemiological studies are available to determine the true incidence of stroke in Pakistan. There is only one published stroke prevalence study which was conducted in a community residing in Karachi, the prevalence was 4.8%, however the results of the study should be interpreted with caution as a non-validated questionnaire was used. (2). Another community-based survey suggested as estimated 21.8% prevalence of stroke in an urban slum of Karachi (3). These studies although published in local journals but do not …

Prevalence Of Depression In Patients With Migraine, A Cross-Sectional Study From A Tertiary Care Hospital, Zuhaib Ahmed, Umar Farooque, Aijaz Ali, Syeda Urooj Riaz, Muhammad Ramzan, Vijaya Chaitanya Bollampally, Ehtesham Zahoor, Omer Cheema, Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Rizwan Farooque, Muhammad Daim Bin Zafar

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

BACKGROUND Headache is one of the most common presenting complaints in patients attending primary care centers and the majority of them have primary headache syndromes. Depressive disorders are among the leading causes of disability globally and can further complicate the clinical manifestation if coupled with other comorbidities. Therefore, the primary objective of our study was to determine the prevalence of depression in migraine patients presenting at a tertiary care hospital to better understand the leading causes of the disease. METHODS A cross-sectional study was carried out between December 2019 and June 2020 (six months) including 66 migraine patients between 18 …

Factors Affecting Treatment Compliance In Psychiatric Setting, Yasirah Gohar, Uroosa Talib, Nasir Mehmood

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Post Therapy Functional Status And Residual Weakness Of Patients With Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Iqra Athar, Anam Anis, Mansoor Iqbal, Sumaira Nabi, Mazhar Badshah, Syeda Rida

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT: Introduction: The annual global incidence of Guillain-Barre Syndrome is approximately 1–2 per 100,000 person-years. Data on Guillain-Barre Syndrome is very rare from Pakistan, we conducted a retrospective study to assess the clinical presentation, and treatment response of these patients.

Obturator Nerve Block With Aqueous Phenol Reduces Hip Adductor Spasticity – A Single Centre Experience, Sarah Razaq, Fahim Anwar, Muhammad Aleem Arshad

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT

Aim: Spasticity is a cardinal symptom of upper motor neuron disorders. It affects different individuals differently.

Spasticity in the hip adductor muscles can be very painful and may result in postural abnormalities and hip deformities

that interfere with walking, transferring and perineal hygiene. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of phenol

obturator nerve block on hip adductor spasticity caused by the upper motor neuron lesions.

Materials and methods: This is a single-centre retrospective study of all patients with known spasticity in the hip

adductors who were assessed suitable for phenol nerve block of the obturator nerve. All patients …

Assessment Of Dementia Caregiver Burden In Karachi, Pakistan Using 10/66 Protocol, Qurat Ul Ain Khan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION: Care arrangements and caregiver burden of people with dementia (PWD) are different in low and middle income countries (LMICs) than in developed countries. This is the first study in Pakistan assessing caregiver burden using the 10/66 protocol. METHOD: PWD were recruited from outpatient clinics and from the community in Karachi and were diagnosed according to DSM-IV TR. Three scales were used: 1. Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) to assess caregiver burden. 2. Caregiver Activity Survey (CAS) to assess activities that the caregiver engaged in the last 24 hours to care for PWD and 3. General Health Questionnaire- 12 (GHQ …

A Case Of Heroin Induced Toxic Leukoencephalopathy, Sidra Sattar, Saba Zaidi

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT: Heroin-induced leukoencephalopathy comes under the category of Toxic leukoencephalopathies. We report the case of middle-aged gentleman with the history of polysubstance abuse who presented with recurrent falls, difficulty in walking and drowsiness. Diffuse white matter changes were appreciated on MRI Brain with sparing of cerebellum. In context of his history of inhalational heroin abuse with extensive symmetrical white matter changes in cerebrum, a diagnosis of heroin induced toxic leukoencephalopathy was made.

Hemichorea Associated With Type 2 Diabetes: A Rare Neurological Complication, Waleed Shahzad, Tehmina Inayat, Fibhaa Syed, Mohammad Ali Arif, Muhammad Hassan, Haris Majid Rajput, Mazhar Badshah

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Diabetic hemichorea/hemiballism is a spectrum of hyper kinetic, involuntary, irregular, purposeless, non-rhythmic, rapid and unsustained movements flowing from one part of the body to another. It involves contra lateral basal-ganglia and often striatum of the brain. Here we are reporting an un-usual case of choreiform movement disorder which was sudden in onset. It was accompanied with abnormally high values of blood glucose. Our patient had a complete remission of symptoms after an adequate control of blood glucose was achieved. This case illustrates the importance and rarity of hyperglycemia as a rare cause of hemichorea. It recovers rapidly and has a …

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis: A Sub-Saharan Conundrum, Antonina Obayo, Sylvia Mbugua, Sayed Karar

Internal Medicine, East Africa

Spinal cord schistosomiasis is a rare, underdiagnosed manifestation of schistosomiasis. We present the case of a 36-year-old male who presented to our institution with a one-week history of low back pain with rapidly progressive lower limb weakness, loss of sensation, and flaccid paraparesis. An MRI of the spine showed a longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis from T6 to L1, with enhancement at the cauda equina region. Further review of the images and serological tests eventually led to diagnosis of spinal schistosomiasis. He was treated with praziquantel and high-dose steroids, with minimal improvement in his symptoms.

Spectrum Of Fugitive Diagnosis Of Neurological Disorders In Elderly, Safia Bano, Ayesha Aslam, Adnan Tariq, Adnan Mahmood, Rashid Imran, Ahsan Numan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND Fugitive diagnosis “escape from true diagnosis” of neurological disorders is very common in elderly patients. It’s not always an underlying disease symptom or progression in old age. Aim of this study is to determine the frequency and nature of fugitive diagnosis of neurodegenerative brain disorders in old age. MATERIAL AND METHODS STUDY DESIGN A study was conducted in private Neuro-clinic in Lahore. Study duration is 3 years from to 1st January, 2017 to 31th December, 2019. It was a prospective, cross sectional study. Inclusion criteria: 1) Age >60years 2) Neurodegenerative brain disorders including vascular dementia 3) with or …

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis And Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder: A Tertiary Care Centre Experience, Safia Bano, Muhammad Athar Javed, Ahsan Numan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis and Causes of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis METHODOLOGY: A Cross-Sectional, retrospective study was conducted at Neurology Department, Mayo Hospital, Lahore from 1st January 2015 to 31st December 2015. Patients were included from inpatient with history of weakness of lower limbs/all four limbs with or without visual disturbances. History and clinical examination was consistent with transverse myelitis. Neuroimaging (MRI brain, (orbit in case of optic neuritis) and spinal cord) was done followed by LP/CSF, Vasculitis screening.

Sleep Deprivation And Neurological Disorders, Muhammed Bishir

Brain and Mind Institute

Sleep plays an important role in maintaining neuronal circuitry, signalling and helps maintain overall health and wellbeing. Sleep deprivation (SD) disturbs the circadian physiology and exerts a negative impact on brain and behavioural functions. SD impairs the cellular clearance of misfolded neurotoxin proteins like α-synuclein, amyloid-β, and tau which are involved in major neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. In addition, SD is also shown to affect the glymphatic system, a glial-dependent metabolic waste clearance pathway, causing accumulation of misfolded faulty proteins in synaptic compartments resulting in cognitive decline. Also, SD affects the immunological and …

Can Awake Glioma Surgery Be The New Standard Of Care In Developing Countries?, Syed Sarmad Bukhari, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim

Section of Neurosurgery

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Neuroprotective Effect Of Tranexamic Acid: An Exploratory Analysis Of The Crash-3 Randomised Trial, Amy Brenner, Antonio Belli, Rizwana Chaudhri, Timothy Coats, Lauren Frimley, Sabariah Faizah Jamaluddin, Rashid Jooma, Raoul Mansukhani, Peter Sandercock, Haleema Shakur-Still

Section of Neurosurgery

Background: The CRASH-3 trial hypothesised that timely tranexamic acid (TXA) treatment might reduce deaths from intracranial bleeding after traumatic brain injury (TBI). To explore the mechanism of action of TXA in TBI, we examined the timing of its effect on death.
Methods: The CRASH-3 trial randomised 9202 patients within 3 h of injury with a GCS score ≤ 12 or intracranial bleeding on CT scan and no significant extracranial bleeding to receive TXA or placebo. We conducted an exploratory analysis of the effects of TXA on all-cause mortality within 24 h of injury and within 28 days, excluding patients with …

Intracranial Mesenchymal Tumor With Fet-Creb Fusion - A Unifying Diagnosis For The Spectrum Of Intracranial Myxoid Mesenchymal Tumors And Angiomatoid Fibrous Histiocytoma-Like Neoplasms, Emily A. Sloan, Jason Chiang, Javier E. Villanueva-Meyer, Sanda Alexandrescu, Jennifer M. Eschbacher, Wesley Wang, Manuela Mafra, Nasir Ud Din, Emily Carr-Boy, Michael Watson

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Intracranial mesenchymal tumors with FET-CREB fusions are a recently described group of neoplasms in children and young adults characterized by fusion of a FET family gene (usually EWSR1, but rarely FUS) to a CREB family transcription factor (ATF1, CREB1, or CREM), and have been variously termed intracranial angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma or intracranial myxoid mesenchymal tumor. The clinical outcomes, histologic features, and genomic landscape are not well defined. Here we studied twenty patients with intracranial mesenchymal tumors proven to harbor FET-CREB fusion by next-generation sequencing (NGS). The 16 female and 4 male patients had a median age of 14 years (range …

Anaesthetic Management Of Patients Undergoing Deep Brain Simulation: A Retrospective Review Of 8 Cases From A Tertiary Care Center Of Pakistan, Usama Ahmed, Faraz Shafiq, Dileep Kumar, Khalid Ahsan, Waleed Bin Ghaffar, Muhammad Ehsan Bari

Department of Anaesthesia

Objectives: To review anaesthesia related outcome, perioperative complications and overall length of stay (LOS) in hospital for patients who had deep brain stimulation (DBS).
Methods: The study was retrospective review of patients medical records diagnosed with Parkinson disease (PD) and underwent DBS at The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi from 2017-2019. Data was reviewed from file notes and patient chart and recorded on predesigned Performa. Frequency and percentages were used to present the data.
Results: All patients were anaesthetized using Sleep-Awake-Sleep technique (SAS). Dexmedetomidine was mainly used for conscious sedation. Bispectral index monitor (BIS) was used to monitor the depth …

Childhood Medulloblastoma, Naureen Mushtaq, Shahzadi Resham, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim, Bilal Mazhar Qureshi, Quratulain Riaz, Eric Bouffet

Section of Haematology/Oncology

Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumour in children and is a major cause of mortality and morbidity, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. It has been risk-stratified on the basis of clinical (age, metastasis and extent of resection) and histological subtypes (classic, desmoplastic and anaplastic). However, recently medulloblastoma has been sub-grouped by using a variety of different genomic approaches, such as gene expression profiling, micro-ribonucleic acid profiling and methylation array into 4 groups, namely Wingless, Sonic hedgehog, Group 3 and Group 4. This new sub-grouping has important therapeutic and prognostic implications. After acute leukaemia, brain tumour is the …

Air Pollution And Non Communicable Diseases, Zafar Fatmi, Shafaq Mahmood, Zainab Samad, Mohammad Wasay

Community Health Sciences

No abstract provided.

Quality Of Life In Children Treated For Craniopharyngiomas, Mishal Gillani, Sheza Hassan, Umme Hani Abdullah, Muhammad Waqas Saeed Baqai, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim

Medical College Documents

Craniopharyngiomas are common but complex paediatric brain lesions that present interesting management challenges. Quality of life is an important consideration while choosing management options. In this review, we have discussed the existing literature on various aspects of quality of life in patients treated for craniopharyngioma, assessed by variety of measurement tools.

Consequences Of A Missed History: A Case Of Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome, Sajid Hameed, Mukesh Kumar, Piyush Puri, Fnu Sapna, Pal Satyajit Singh Athwal

Section of Neurology

Antidepressant discontinuation syndrome (ADDS) is reported to occur in almost 30-50% of the patients who take antidepressants for a duration of at least four to six weeks and then suddenly discontinue the drug. Since there is an increase in the use of antidepressants for various reasons by general practitioners, patient education about when and how to discontinue a drug is not acknowledged enough. It is reported to occur with the use of different classes of antidepressants - selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), monoamineoxidase inhibitor (MAOI), tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), and atypical antipsychotics like risperidone, trazodone, clozapine, and venlafaxine. Slow tapering off …

Surgical Outcomes Of Intramedullary Spinal Cord Ependymomas, Ummey Hani, Muhammad Waqas Saeed Baqai, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim

Section of Neurosurgery

Intramedullary Spinal Cord Ependymomas (ISCE) are uncommon pathologies that need to be aggressively managed before clinical deterioration sets in. Novel application of different therapeutic strategies is being assessed for improving long-term outcomes in patients presenting with these rare neoplasms. In this review, we have discussed the existing literature on ISCEs, and the role of surgery in determining outcomes in terms of neurological status, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).

Acute Symptomatic Seizures In Critically Ill Children: Frequency, Etiology And Outcomes, Sanam B. Rajper, Mujtaba Moazzam, Arsheen Zeeshan, Qalab Abbas

Department of Paediatrics and Child Health

Background: Critically ill individuals have an increased risk of acute symptomatic seizures secondary to systemic illnesses; unrecognized or untreated seizures can quickly convert into status epilepticus, which is associated with high morbidity and mortality.
Objective: The aim of this study was to determine frequency, etiology, and outcome of seizures in critical ill children admitted in intensive care unit of a tertiary care hospital.
Materials and methods: Retrospective review of medical records of all children admitted in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of the Aga Khan University from January 2016 to December 2018 and who had a new-onset seizure irrespective of …

Cerebellar Mutism Syndrome After Surgical Resection Of Posterior Fossa Neoplastic Lesions, Saqib Kamran Bakhshi, Rida Mitha, Naureen Mushtaq, Muhammad Shahzad Shamim

Section of Neurosurgery

Cerebellar Mutism Syndrome (CMS) is a well-described clinical entity that complicates surgeries for posterior fossa tumours; more so in children than adults. This review focuses on the current understanding of CMS, its incidence and risk factors. Incidence showed a variable range in retrospective studies due to variety of definitions. Risk factors can be classified as either modifiable including surgical technique, or non-modifiable which include tumour related factors. A positive correlation has been associated between tumour pathology, brain stem invasion and size of tumour at time of presentation with development of CMS.

Inadvertent Stone Migration During Pneumatic Lithotripsy: Still A Conundrum In The 21st Century, Ali Akbar Zehri, Miten Patel, Philip Adebayo, Authar Ali

General Surgery, East Africa

Currently, an ideal gadget to stop retrograde stone migration remains a holy grail, and the hunt for such a device is still ongoing in the 21st century. The quest for an ideal instrument is driven by the need to reduce cost, minimize ancillary procedure rates, reduce the device's operative time, and improve the stone-free rate. The purpose of the present review is to provide an update on the use of preventive measures that are used to stop retrograde stone migration during pneumatic lithotripsy for ureteric stone management.

Currently, an ideal gadget to stop retrograde stone migration remains a holy grail, …

Postinfectious Cerebellar Syndrome With Paraneoplastic Antibodies: An Association Or Coincidence?, Sajid Hameed, Mukesh Kumar, Pal Satyajit Singh Athwal, Sukhmanii Kahlon, Nimit Dalal

Section of Neurology

Cerebellar ataxia has a very broad differential diagnosis in adults, including paraneoplastic and postinfectious etiologies. We report a case of a 56-year-old male presented with right-sided cerebellar dysfunction preceded by fever and headache. He was diagnosed with subacute postinfectious cerebellar ataxia. Blood serology showed the presence of anti-amphiphysin and anti-Ri (ANNA-2, antineuronal nuclear autoantibody type 2) antibodies, which have a known association with cerebellar syndrome. The patient subsequently improved with the steroids. Although no evidence of an underlying tumor was found in the patient, the presence of the paraneoplastic antibodies remains a mystery. We suggest a probable association of these …