introduction: evaluation of the cerebrospinal fluid (csf) white blood cell (wbc) count and glucose and protein concentrations is used to assess the probability of the presence of central nervous system (cns) infection. although normal values are well established for csf cell counts and protein and glucose contents in children and adults, this is not the case for neonates. the purpose of this st...

Introduction: Evaluation of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) white blood cell (WBC) count and glucose and protein concentrations is used to assess the probability of the presence of central nervous system (CNS) infection. Although normal values are well established for CSF cell counts and protein and glucose contents in children and adults, this is not the case for neonates. The purpose of this st...

OBJECTIVES Late recovery of awareness in vegetative state (VS) is considered as an exceptional outcome, and has been reported prevalently after traumatic brain injury (TBI). The present prospective study aimed to verify frequency of late recovery (later than 1 year postonset in TBI and 3 months postonset in patients without TBI) of responsiveness and consciousness in traumatic and nontraumatic ...

OBJECTIVE We assessed the effects of left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex transcranial direct current stimulation (DLPF-tDCS) on Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) scores in severely brain-damaged patients with disorders of consciousness. METHODS In a double-blind sham-controlled crossover design, anodal and sham tDCS were delivered in randomized order over the left DLPF cortex for 20 minutes...

Spinal epidural hematoma, a potentially devastating problem, requires rapid diagnosis and urgent surgical intervention. Two types of spinal epidural hematoma have been described in the literature: traumatic and nontraumatic.1 Traumatic spinal epidural hematoma has been attributed to spine surgery,2 epidural catheter placement,3 lumbar puncture,4 and chiropractic manipulation.5 Nontraumatic, or ...

Little evidence exists to support the presence of differences in spatiotemporal gait parameters and ambulation ability between those individuals with traumatic and nontraumatic lower-limb amputation (LLA). We conducted an exploratory study of 81 male Veterans with unilateral amputation to quantify differences in spatiotemporal gait parameters and ambulatory mobility between Veterans with trauma...

CONTEXT The receptor activator of nuclear factor kappaB ligand (RANKL) is essential for osteoclast and, possibly, osteoblast activation and may represent a key link between bone formation and resorption. OBJECTIVE To determine the relationship between serum level of RANKL and the risk of nontraumatic fracture. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS As part of a prospective population-based study...

Heterotopic ossification (HO), deposition of para-articular ectopic bone, is associated with musculoskeletal trauma and certain congenital and metabolic disorders. Additionally, HO may follow paralysis from diverse traumatic and nontraumatic neurologic insults. We describe three cases of HO associated with catastrophic nontraumatic respiratory illness requiring prolonged chemical paralysis and ...

OBJECTIVE To assess survival in patients with nontraumatic spinal cord lesions (SCL). DESIGN Retrospective cohort study. SETTING Spinal department at a rehabilitation hospital in Israel. PARTICIPANTS Patients with nontraumatic SCL (N=1085) admitted between 1962 and 2000. INTERVENTIONS Demographic, clinical, and mortality data were collected from hospital charts and from the Population R...

In a study by Cruse et al. published in BMC Medicine, patients with severe brain damage who were in the Vegetative or Minimally Conscious States (VS or MCS, respectively) from traumatic and nontraumatic etiologies had assessments of circadian rhythms using an actigraph, a device worn on a limb to evaluate circadian rhythmicity, in this population. This is a novel approach and is being used as a...