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H Petit

Publications and source records attributed to H Petit.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

The effects of capsaicin on the neurogenic hyperreflexic detrusor. A double blind placebo controlled study in patients with spinal cord disease. Preliminary results.

PURPOSE: Several recent open studies have provided encouraging results as to the efficacy of intravesical installations of capsaicin for neurogenic hyperreflectivity. The present trial was performed to verify these results under controlled conditions. Intravesical installation of capsaicin represents a new therapeutic hope for the treatment of the neurogenic hyperrelfexic bladder. METHOD: This randomized, double-blind study compared the results of the intravesical installation of 30 mg capsaicin in 100 ml of 30% alcohol (experimental group) with those of installing 100 ml 30% alcohol alone (control group). On day 0 and day 30, urodynamic and biopsic examinations were performed in all subjects of each group. PATIENTS: All the subjects included in the study had a functionally disabling form of neurogenic hyperreflexic bladder resistant to the usual therapies. Cystoscopy and retrograde cystography were performed to exclude any patient who presented with a tumor-like lesion or had vesicoureteral reflux. RESULTS: Twelve paraplegic of tetraplegic subjects, seven women and five men whose average age was 46, were included. Eight had multiple sclerosis, and four had sustained a traumatic spinal cord injury. The patients were randomly separated into two groups of six. Initially, there was no clinical or urodynamic differences in these groups. Installation immediately triggered side effects and during the first 7 days (suprapubic burning sensation, sensory urgency, hot flushes, autonomic hyperreflexia, hematuria) in five of the six subjects in both groups. Bladder biopsy revealed no significant deterioration. On day 30, there was improvement in all of the experimental-group of patients with significant regression of leakage (P = 0.002) and of sensory urgency (P = 0.01). Only one control subject had amelioration. Urodynamic examination showed a rise in bladder capacity from 172.5 to 312.3 ml in the experimental group, significantly greater (P = 0.03) than the rise from 129 to 175.3 ml observed in the control group. CONCLUSION: This trial fully confirms the efficacy of intravesical installations of capsaicin, an efficacy obtained at the cost of nonnegligible side effects. An intermediate-term follow-up of this treatment will be necessary before considering more widespread use of this agent.

Adult↗

Botulinum A toxin treatment for detrusor-sphincter dyssynergia in spinal cord disease.

We studied the efficacy of endoscopic injection of Botulinum A toxin (150 I.U. Dysport) in the treatment of detrusor-sphincter dyssynergia in 17 patients with spinal cord disease. One month after the injection, the postvoiding residual urine volume (-176 ml, P < 0.001), the bladder pressure on voiding (-19 cm water, P < 0.01), and the urethral pressure (-24 cm water, P < 0.001) were significantly decreased. The modality of voiding was improved in 10 patients (i.e. micturition by suprapubic tapping was easier to induce, discontinuation of indwelling catheter use, or decrease in frequency of intermittent catheterizations). The tolerance of the treatment was excellent. The therapeutic effect lasted 2 to 3 months on the average. The low doses used in this study probably explain in part why the treatment sometimes failed. Botulinum A toxin could become an alternative treatment for detrusorsphincter dyssynergia in certain patients, notably in those who are refractory to sphincterotomy or in patients, such as those who are tetraplegic, and who are incapable of performing intermittent self-catheterization.

Adult↗

Early clinical experience with subcutaneous naratriptan in the acute treatment of migraine: a dose-ranging study.

Naratriptan is a novel, potent agonist at the 5HT1B/1D receptor. A total of 335 migraine patients were treated in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging, in-clinic study, to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of five doses of subcutaneous (sc) naratriptan (0.5, 1, 2.5, 5 or 10 mg) in comparison with sc sumatriptan (6 mg) and placebo in the acute treatment of a moderate/severe migraine attack. Headache relief [reduction of headache severity from moderate or severe (grade 2/3) to mild or none (grade 1/0)] at 1 and 2 h after each dose, was reported by a statistically significantly higher proportion of patients for all doses of sc naratriptan and sc sumatriptan (6 mg) than for placebo. The percentages of patients with headache relief at 2 h post-dose were: naratriptan (0.5 mg) 65%, (1 mg) 75%, (2.5 mg) 83%, (5 mg) 94% and (10 mg) 91%; sumatriptan (6 mg) 89%; placebo 41%, (P < 0.005). The earliest report of a statistically significant difference compared with placebo for the times assessed was with sc naratriptan (10 mg) at 10 min post-dose (P = 0.023). The percentages of patients reporting adverse events were dose-related; sc naratriptan (0.5 mg) 33%, (1 mg) 29%, (2.5 mg) 43%, (5 mg) 59% and (10 mg) 71%; sc sumatriptan 53%; placebo 22%. There were no clinically significant changes in electrocardiogram (ECG), vital signs or laboratory parameters. Systemic exposure increased proportionally to the dose, the absorption of sc naratriptan was rapid (tmax = 10 min) and the half-life was 5 h. In conclusion, sc naratriptan was an effective and well-tolerated acute treatment for migraine. Copyright 1998 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Journal Article↗

Frontotemporal behavioral scale.

At autopsy, frontotemporal dementia (FTD) account for up to 20% of degenerative dementia cases, although FTDs are underrecognized in memory clinics. FTDs are confused with Alzheimer disease (AD) or vascular dementia (VaD). These misdiagnosis may affect the results of AD pharmacological trials. The first manifestations of FTD are behavioral abnormalities. The aim of this study was to assess a behavioral scale of frontal lobe dysfunction and to determine a behavioral cutoff to diagnose early FTD and distinguish it from AD and VaD. The score of the behavioral frontotemporal lobe dysfunction assessment scale was higher in FTD than in other dementias (p < 0.0001). With a cutoff of 3 points on the scale, FTD patients were diagnosed with a specificity of 95% and sensitivity of 91%. Noncognitive symptoms known to be institutionalization factors could contribute to differences between etiologies of mild dementia.

Aged↗

Genetic polymorphisms adjacent to the CAG repeat influence clinical features at onset in Huntington's disease.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate possible influences of CCG and delta2642 glutamic acid polymorphisms adjacent to the (CAG)n trinucleotide repeat in Huntington's disease gene IT15 on some clinical features (age and symptoms) at onset. METHODS: 84 patients and a control group of 68 unaffected relatives were studied. Patients all belonged to a group of affected persons tested for molecular confirmation of Huntington's disease. The length of the CAG repeat sequence in the IT15 gene and the adjacent CCG and delta2642 polymorphisms were determined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: Two intragenic polymorphisms were studied: (CCG)n and delta2642 glutamic acid. Patients were classified firstly according to the size of the CCG rich segment adjacent to the CAG repeat into genotype groups CCG 7/7, 7/8, 7/9, 7/10, and 10/10 and then according to delta2642 polymorphism into genotype groups A/A (absence of the delta2642 deletion), A/B, and B/B (presence of the delta2642 deletion in respectively one and two alleles). The presence of delta2642 mutation was associated with a significant decrease in age at onset, although there was no significant increase in CAG size. A good correlation was found between the (CAG)n trinucleotide repeat size and the age at onset in patients with genotype AA (r2=0.72). Within patients of the A/B genotype group however, a significant correlation was found but with a drop of the r2 value to 0.44. No association was found between age at onset and the CCG polymorphism. Although an increased percentage of patients within the A/A genotype group had a neurological onset, we found no overall significant association between CCG or delta2642 polymorphisms and the nature of symptoms at onset. CONCLUSIONS: The delta2642 glutamic acid polymorphism did not affect CAG repeat size nor the nature of symptoms at onset but seems to influence the age at onset in patients with Huntington's disease.

Adenine↗

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: neurophysiologic visual impairments.

OBJECTIVE: The predictive value of electrophysiologic visual testing in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) was investigated, and the retinal pathologic findings in three cases are reported. BACKGROUND: The fatal prognosis of CJD, its transmissibility, and the lack of treatment make early diagnosis essential in averting human-to-human transmission. Electroretinogram and visual evoked potentials have been studied in few cases of CJD. METHODS: A visual electrophysiologic examination was performed in 41 consecutive patients referred with suspected CJD. The disease had been diagnosed in 24 patients (CJD group; 15 were confirmed neuropathologically and 9 by clinicolaboratory methods in accordance with diagnostic criteria). The remaining 17 patients were diagnosed with other neurologic disorders, and served as a control group. RESULTS: Flash electroretinogram revealed a significant decrease in the amplitude of the B1 wave (<60 microV) and the B/A ratio (<2) in the CJD group compared with those in the control group. Flash visual evoked potentials revealed no significant difference in latency, but amplitude was increased (>10 microV) in the CJD group, especially in patients with myoclonus. CONCLUSIONS: The visual electrophysiologic abnormalities provide an interesting noninvasive diagnostic tool in idiopathic CJD. The B1-wave decrease is closely correlated with the outer plexiform layer abnormalities observed on neuropathologic examination.

Adult↗

The first European family with tibial muscular dystrophy outside the Finnish population.

We report the first European tibial muscular dystrophy (TMD) family outside the Finnish population. Clinical examination showed late onset distal leg myopathy similar to the description of TMD. A molecular genetic study was made owing to the very recent TMD linkage findings on chromosome 2q31. All five clinically affected patients segregated a specific haplotype for the locus, whereas two unaffected patients had different haplotype. The results of this family without Finnish ancestors show that TMD exists outside the Finnish population.

Aged↗

[Effect of preoperative administration of Lugol's solution on thyroid blood flow in hyperthyroidism].

A study of 50 patients with hyperthyroidism was conducted to evaluate the effect of preoperative administration of Lugol's iodine solution on thyroid blood flow. Highly significant reductions in diameter, time-averaged velocity, and volume flow of the superior thyroid artery were demonstrated after administration of Lugol's solution. The Duplex ultrasound scanning used in this study is a noninvasive, inexpensive, accurate, and reproducible technique suitable for analysis of thyroid blood flow in hyperthyroidism. On the basis of current ultrasonographic results and low postoperative morbidity in patients, Lugol's solution is well tolerated and may be recommended for use before thyroidectomy, especially for diffuse toxic goiters and Graves disease.

Adult↗

[Clinical diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia].

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is poorly recognized clinically. Of the 1,517 patients examined at the Lille Outpatients Memory Clinic data bank (1991-1995), 74 fulfilled the criteria of the Lund and Manchester groups for FTD. They accounted for 5 p, 100 of all patients, 1 for 10 probable or possible Alzheimer's disease. Mean patient age was 63 years, duration of the disease was 5 years, mean Mini Mental State score was 23; 45 p. 100 belonged to the active population. Behavioral disorders occurred before the cognitive decline and remained the major feature. All patients had at least 3 of the following symptoms: self-control impairment, affective disorder, loss of interest and self-neglect. Memory impairment consisted of correct encoding and impaired retrieval processes, without major storage impairment. No patients had spatial disorientation. Language was usually reduced, EEG was normal. Two diagnoses were confirmed by autopsy: both consisted of aspecific frontal and temporal degeneration, 41 p. 100 of the patients were referred by a general practitioner, 30 p. 100 by a psychiatrist, 16 p. 100 by a neurologist, 2 p. 100 by other specialists, and 11 p. 100 following the advice of their relatives. FTD had never been suspected. Alzheimer's disease or non specified degenerative dementia was suspected in 2/3 of patients and a psychiatric disorder in 1/3. With the advent of novel pharmacological agents for the treatment of dementing disorders and for research purposes, the identification and accurate differentiation of FTD from Alzheimer's disease and psychiatric disorder is essential. Therefore, the role of multidisciplinary memory clinic is crucial to differentiate FTD from other degenerative dementias.

Age of Onset↗

[Consensus statement of an interdisciplinary group of French experts on modalities of diagnosis and medical treatment of Alzheimer's disease at a treatable stage].

A group of French expert met on the 7th and 8th of February 1998 in order to establish a consensus attitude for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis and treatment. Members were drawn from primary care, geriatrics, neurology and psychiatry. They used the consensus statement of the American Association for Geriatrics, the Alzheimer's Association and the American Geriatrics Society published in JAMA, in October 1997 as a source of data for further consideration. Alzheimer's disease in the most common etiology of dementia. Main clinical features are cognitive impairment and psycho-behavioral disorders. Diagnosis must be one of inclusion and not exclusion. It is based on interviews of informants and family members and office-based clinical assessment. After a physical examination, cognitive function must be evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination. A laboratory evaluation should include a complete blood cell count, blood chemistry and determination of thyroid-stimulating hormone. In addition, noncontrast computed tomography head scans are adequate in most cases. Available pharmacologic treatments are not curative but are given to improve quality of life and enhance cognition and behavior. Two cholinesterases inhibitors, tacrine and donepezil, are the only agents officially authorized for treatment of the cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease. Mood and behaviour disorder also have to be treated by both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic strategies. Only pharmacologic treatments will be detailed here. The consensus statements established by this group of experts will be reevaluated each year, considering the new available data on Alzheimer's disease.

Aged↗

[Lewy body dementia].

Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) is an entity which now fulfils clinical and neuropathological criteria according to international consensus guidelines (McKeith et al., 1996). It is now possible, in clinical practice, to consider the diagnosis of DLB from the beginning of the management of a demented patient. The clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of DLB are investigated in a prospective manner. Visual hallucinations, fluctuations and extrapyramidal symptoms seem to have, in association with the progressive cognitive decline, some particularities. However their specificity should be correlated with neuropathological data. Other symptoms, such as repeated falls or syncope, neuroleptic sensitivity, systematized delusions or other modalities of hallucinations, are probably additional arguments giving more predictive value to the association of the major symptoms. The role of neuropsychological patterns at the beginning of the cognitive decline is shown. There are some recent concordant results of functional imaging in DLB. The neuropathological aspects of DLB and the links with Parkinson pathology and especially Alzheimer pathology are emphasized.

Humans↗

[Memory complaints: what should be done? From consultation to the memory center].

Memory complaints are frequent and not always the result of a memory impairment. Such complaints must be taken into account since they always reflect some disorder, at least of attentional processes. Excepting primary psychiatric disorders, biological and imaging exams are required in addition to a neuropsychological and behavioral assessment. Finding the cause of the memory complaints is not an end in itself. The purpose is to cure or at least to relieve the consequences of this and related symptoms with pharmacological, neuropsychological and psychological therapies, social help, information and support. Patients (especially in case of dementia) and families need follow-up care by a multidisciplinary staff (neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, speech therapists, nurses, nurse's aids and social workers) who play a role of prevention for intercurrent diseases, social and legal counselling and help anticipate the future. Multidisciplinary memory units are dedicated to the diagnosis and care of memory complaints and disorders. We describe here the operative function of these centers which should be integrated into a health care network centered around patients with memory complaints and their families.

Ambulatory Care Facilities↗

[Collet-Sicard syndrome disclosing periarteritis nodosa].

An 82-year-old woman developed acute onset isolated paralysis of the right ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth cranial nerves (Collet-Sicard syndrome). The polynevritis was associated with major weight loss, increased blood pressure, nephropathy, distal arteriopathy and an inflammatory syndrome, suggesting panarteritis nodosa. Neuromuscular biopsy results confirmed the diagnosis. Collet-Sicard syndrome resulted from ischemia in the territory of the ascending pharyngeal artery.

Accessory Nerve↗

Medial temporal lobe atrophy in memory disorders.

Medial temporal lobe atrophy determined by temporal lobe oriented computed tomography (CT), 1 year before death, is strongly associated with histopathologically confirmed Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of medial temporal lobe measurement for the diagnosis of AD in patients referred to a memory disorders clinic, especially those at an early stage of the disease. CT oriented to the temporal lobe was performed in 333 subjects aged 41-93 years consecutively recruited in a Memory Disorders Clinic: 124 had probable AD, Mini Mental State score (MMS) = 17 (8); 50 possible AD [MMS = 21 (5)]; and 119 patients had miscellaneous memory disorders [MMS = 22 (7): frontotemporal lobe dementia, subcortical dementia, cortical Lewy body disease, vascular dementia, Korsakoff syndrome, focal atrophy, etc.]. There were also 19 anxious/depressed patients [MMS = 29 (1)] with normal performance on memory tests, and 21 controls. The minimum width of the medial temporal lobe was measured. The best cut-off to distinguish AD patients from non-AD patients was 11.5 mm, in agreement with data in the literature. At this threshold, 84% of probable AD patients had a positive test and 90% of controls and anxious/depressed patients had a negative test. For the diagnosis of probable AD, sensitivity of the measurement was 0.81, specificity 0.95, predictive positive value 0.99, predictive negative value 0.45, and diagnostic accuracy 0.83. The test was positive in half the possible AD patients, and half those with miscellaneous memory disorders. It was negative in all anxious/depressed patients. Therefore, temporal lobe oriented CT might be a valuable tool for assessment of medial temporal lobe atrophy in AD routine practice.

Adult↗

Albumin-impregnated prosthetic graft for infrarenal aortic replacement: effects on the incidence and volume of perioperative blood transfusion.

We retrospectively reviewed 290 cases in which an albumin-impregnated polyester prosthetic graft was used for surgical management of aortic bifurcation disease between November 1987 and December 1990. The purpose of this review was to determine the incidence and volume of blood transfusion and to evaluate the rate of patency and the incidence of infection achieved using this type of prosthesis. The indication for surgery was abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in 218 cases (190 elective procedures and 28 emergency procedures) and occlusive disease of the aortic bifurcation (ODAB) in 72 cases. Mean follow-up was 25.5 +/- 13.4 months (range: 1 and 50 months). The incidence of blood transfusion for elective AAA and ODAB surgery was 30.2% and 32.3% intraoperatively, 21.3% and 12.9% postoperatively, and 40.4% and 42.6% overall. The mean number of red cell packs transfused for elective AAA and ODAB surgery was respectively 1 and 0.8 intraoperatively, 0.4 and 0.6 postoperatively, and 1.4 and 1 overall. No immediate or late graft infection prosthesis was observed in any patient in this series. Primary and secondary patency was 95.5% and 97.5% at 6 months with no graft thrombosis during further follow-up. The fact that use of an impregnated graft in management of aortic bifurcation disease was accompanied by a high incidence and volume of blood transfusion suggests that these grafts do not reduce perioperative blood loss. Use of an impregnated prosthesis had no effect on the rate of patency and the incidence infection.

Aged↗

Clinical presentation and treatment options for mitral valve myxoma.

Myxomas rarely are located on the mitral valve. We report the case of a 44-year-old man operated on successfully with mitral valve conservation, which is the 21st case of mitral valve myxoma reported in the western literature. Among the cases reported in the literature, the diagnosis was made at the time of autopsy in 6 cases, with premortem heart failure in 1 case. A clinical diagnosis was made in 15 cases on the basis of the following symptoms: peripheral embolism in 9 cases, cardiac signs in 4 cases, and constitutional manifestations in 2 cases. The clinical presentation of mitral valve myxoma differs slightly from that of other cardiac myxomas in that it has a lower incidence of constitutional manifestations. The gold standard for noninvasive diagnosis and localization of cardiac myxomas is transesophageal echocardiography. It allows for the detection of early, small valvular tumors and may help to characterize better their location and echostructure, facilitating the choice of an optimal surgical approach through preoperative study of the integrity and mobility of the valve. Conservative operative treatment by resection of the area of implantation of the myxoma followed by suture repair of the valve and annuloplasty may be recommended as the most appropriate treatment option for this rare condition.

Adult↗

Unilateral neglect syndrome rehabilitation by trunk rotation and scanning training.

OBJECTIVE: Assessment of a new rehabilitation method for unilateral neglect syndrome (UNS), using a specific device (Bon Saint Come's device) that associates exploratory reconditioning with voluntary trunk rotation. DESIGN: Study 1, randomized control trial during 2 months; study 2, nonrandomized control trial during 2 months. SETTING: Neurorehabilitation units in private and public center. PATIENTS: In study 1, 22 consecutive patients with UNS resulting from recent stroke (< 3 months) were randomly assigned to an Experimental Group (11 patients) or to a Control Group (11 patients). The 2 groups were very similar in terms of general and neurological data. In study 2, 5 consecutive patients with chronic UNS resulting from an old stroke (> 6 months) showing the same characteristics were included. INTERVENTION: In study 1, patients in Group E followed the experimental program 1 hour a day for 1 month (20 hours) and Group C followed usual neurorehabilitation during the same time. In study 2, every patient followed the experimental program 1 hour a day for 1 month (20 hours). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Assessment in both studies was done at day 0, day 30, and day 60 using a battery of UNS tests (Albert, Scheckenberg, bell) and an activities of daily living (ADL) test (the Functional Independence Measure [FIM]). Mean scores of each test were compared between the 2 groups with the Wilcoxon nonparametric test. RESULTS: In study 1 all UNS test results and the FIM improved significantly more in Group E than in Group C. In Group E, UNS disappeared in 5 patients and improved in 6. In Group C, UNS disappeared in 1 patient, improved in 4, and was unchanged in 6. In Study 2, UNS remitted in 2 patients, improved in 2 patients, and was unchanged in 1. CONCLUSION: The Bon Saint Come method seems to significantly improve recent and chronic UNS, as well as ADL function. These encouraging results could have resulted from a synergistic effect of spatial reconditioning and voluntary trunk rotation. It must be assessed by a new study with more patients.

Activities of Daily Living↗