Biomedical subjects

E Boccardi

Publications and source records attributed to E Boccardi.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1987

Hypercoagulability in acute stroke: prognostic significance.

To evaluate the clinical significance of hemostatic abnormalities in acute stroke, we studied coagulation and platelet function in 70 patients with recent cerebral infarction or hemorrhage and in 45 age-matched controls. Higher levels of one-stage factor VIII coagulant activity, fibrinopeptide A (FPA), and beta-thromboglobulin were associated with the occurrence of stroke. All hemostatic test results were remarkably similar in patients with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. FPA levels and size of the lesion on CT were the only variables independently predicting mortality in a multivariate regression analysis. Our findings demonstrate that hypercoagulability is an important prognostic factor in stroke and lend support to clinical trials of drugs interfering with the coagulation system in the early phase of cerebral ischemia.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1986

Unexpected CT-scan findings in global aphasia.

The clinical-CT scan correlation was studied in 37 stroke patients with global aphasia. The time between stroke and language examination was between 21 and 60 days; the time between stroke and CT scan was equal to or longer than 21 days. It was found that while 22 patients harboured the expected large lesions including Broca's and Wernicke's areas, 8 had anterior lesions sparing Wernicke's area, 3 had posterior lesions sparing Broca's area, and 4 had deep lesions centered on the insula and lenticular nucleus. These findings suggest that global aphasia, albeit apparently simple from the semeiological viewpoint (also due to its severity), does in fact include different clinical entities. However, no clear-cut correlation was found between either subtype of speech production or severity, and locus of the lesion (except that deep lesions were associated with somewhat milder forms). An interesting finding, i.e. that all 8 patients with anterior lesions were females, while the 3 posterior ones were male, is briefly discussed in terms of possible differential organization of language functions in the two sexes.

Adult↗

PubMed1985

Prognostic significance of hyperglycemia in acute stroke.

Prognostic significance of hyperglycemia on short-term survival was evaluated in 72 patients with acute hemispheric stroke. All patients were admitted within 48 hours of onset, and the neurologic deficit was assessed by means of a standardized score. A computed tomogram was taken in all cases on admission. Mortality was higher in hyperglycemic patients with no history of diabetes mellitus (78%) than in diabetic (45%) and in normoglycemic nondiabetic (29%) patients. In nondiabetic patients, the glucose level correlated with the neurologic score and with lesion size on computed tomogram. Reactive hyperglycemia due to a major stress response accounts for the worse prognosis of these patients. This correlation was not found in diabetic patients. Preexisting hyperglycemia, as well as systemic complications, could explain the higher mortality in these patients compared with normoglycemic nondiabetic patients.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1984

Alexia in recent and late Broca's aphasia.

The hypothesis was tested that alexia associated with Broca's aphasia may often be a residual receptive disorder of a broader picture of global aphasia. It was found that alexia does tend to be associated, as expected, to the long-standing Broca's aphasias more often than to the recent ones. However, the CT scan failed to disclose larger and more posterior lesions in Broca's alexic than in Broca's non-alexic patients.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Myelopathy and radiculopathy due to cervical spondylosis: myelographic-CT correlations.

Forty patients with symptoms and signs of radicular disease or spinal cord involvement secondary to cervical spondylosis were studied with myelography (using nonionic water-soluble contrast medium) followed by computed tomographic (CT) myelography. In 17 patients CT was also performed before myelography. CT myelography adds useful information to the myelographic findings. Cord compression is better evaluated and osteophytes can be differentiated from disk herniation. Plain CT can demonstrate a herniated disk but with less accuracy than CT myelography. Cord and root compression are not seen directly on plain CT; for this reason myelography should be the first procedure in patients with myelopathy or myeloradiculopathy, which may be followed by CT myelography.

Adult↗