Biomedical subjects

M D'Amelio

Publications and source records attributed to M D'Amelio.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Long-term survival of Parkinson's disease: a population-based study.

In a set of a population- based study, long-term survival of 59 prevalent PD patients was compared with that of individuals free of neurological diseases matched 1:2 by sex and age of enrolment. PD individuals, compared with reference subjects, showed a two-fold increased risk of death (OR 2.1; 95 % CI 1.4, 3.1). Among causes of death, pneumonia and cachexia were significantly more frequent among PD patients than among individuals free of neurological diseases. We confirmed in a long-term follow-up study an increased mortality among PD individuals compared with that of the general population.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2005

Paraoxonase gene variants are associated with autism in North America, but not in Italy: possible regional specificity in gene-environment interactions.

Organophosphates (OPs) are routinely used as pesticides in agriculture and as insecticides within the household. Our prior work on Reelin and APOE delineated a gene-environment interactive model of autism pathogenesis, whereby genetically vulnerable individuals prenatally exposed to OPs during critical periods in neurodevelopment could undergo altered neuronal migration, resulting in an autistic syndrome. Since household use of OPs is far greater in the USA than in Italy, this model was predicted to hold validity in North America, but not in Europe. Here, we indirectly test this hypothesis by assessing linkage/association between autism and variants of the paraoxonase gene (PON1) encoding paraoxonase, the enzyme responsible for OP detoxification. Three functional single nucleotide polymorphisms, PON1 C-108T, L55M, and Q192R, were assessed in 177 Italian and 107 Caucasian-American complete trios with primary autistic probands. As predicted, Caucasian-American and not Italian families display a significant association between autism and PON1 variants less active in vitro on the OP diazinon (R192), according to case-control contrasts (Q192R: chi2=6.33, 1 df, P<0.025), transmission/disequilibrium tests (Q192R: TDT chi2=5.26, 1 df, P<0.025), family-based association tests (Q192R and L55M: FBAT Z=2.291 and 2.435 respectively, P<0.025), and haplotype-based association tests (L55/R192: HBAT Z=2.430, P<0.025). These results are consistent with our model and provide further support for the hypothesis that concurrent genetic vulnerability and environmental OP exposure may possibly contribute to autism pathogenesis in a sizable subgroup of North American individuals.

Aryldialkylphosphatase↗

PubMed2004

Risk of Parkinson disease in women: effect of reproductive characteristics.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between some fertile life characteristics and Parkinson disease (PD) in women. METHODS: Women affected by PD and control subjects were matched one to one by age (+/-2 years). One hundred thirty-one women with idiopathic PD and 131 matched control subjects were interviewed. Controls were randomly selected from the resident list of the same municipality of residence of cases. All subjects had a Mini-Mental State Examination score of > or =24. Cumulative length of pregnancies, age at menarche, age and type of menopause, and estrogen use before and after menopause were investigated in cases and controls through a structured questionnaire. Models of matched pair univariate analysis and conditional logistic regression analyses were used to calculate adjusted odds ratio (OR), 95% CI, and two-tailed p values for the investigated variables. RESULTS: PD was significantly associated with a fertile life length shorter than 36 years (OR 2.07; 95% CI 1.00 to 4.30) and a cumulative length of pregnancies longer than 30 months (OR 2.19; 95% CI 1.22 to 3.91). An inverse association between PD and surgical menopause (adjusted OR 0.30; 95% CI 0.13 to 0.77) was also found. CONCLUSIONS: An association between factors reducing estrogen stimulation during life and PD was found. These results support the hypothesis that endogenous estrogens play a role in the development of PD.

Age of Onset↗

PubMed2004

The relapse rate of multiple sclerosis changes during pregnancy: a cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the influence of pregnancy and puerperium on the relapse rate of multiple sclerosis (MS). METHODS: We determined retrospectively the yearly mean relapse rate (MRR) during pregnancies occurring in the course of relapsing-remitting MS. We compared the MRR of pregnancy-time with that of non-pregnancy time by paired t-test. Relative risk (RR) of relapses during the pregnancy-time was also compared with that of non-pregnancy time by chi(2) analysis and 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: From a population of 351 women affected by clinically definite MS, only 70 reported pregnancies during their relapsing-remitting phase of MS for a total of 98 pregnancies. Both MRR (P = 0.006) and RR (RR = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.40-0.94) decreased during the three trimesters of pregnancy. RR increased in the first 3 months of puerperium, although this was not statistically significant (RR = 1.36, 95% CI = 0.79-2.20). CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that in MS the relapse rate decreases throughout pregnancy and increases during puerperium. This suggests a complex interplay between hormonal and immune factors.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Incidence and risk factors in sudden unexpected death in epilepsy: a prospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine incidence of and risk factors for sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). METHODS: Three epilepsy centers enrolled 4,578 patients and prospectively followed these patients for 16,463 patient-years. The cohort was screened for death annually. Deaths were investigated to determine whether SUDEP occurred. Potential risk factors were compared in SUDEP cases and in controls enrolled contemporaneously at the same center. RESULTS: Incidence of SUDEP was 1.21/1,000 patient-years and was higher among women (1.45/1,000) than men (0.98/1,000). SUDEP accounted for 18% of all deaths. Occurrence of tonic-clonic seizures, treatment with more than two anticonvulsant medications, and full-scale IQ less than 70 were independent risk factors for SUDEP. The number of tonic-clonic seizures was a risk factor only in women. The presence of cerebral structural lesions and use of psychotropic drugs at the last visit were not risk factors for SUDEP in this cohort. Subtherapeutic anticonvulsant levels at the last visit were equally common in the two groups. No particular anticonvulsant appeared to be associated with SUDEP. CONCLUSIONS: These results support the idea that tonic-clonic seizures are an important proximate cause of SUDEP. This information creates a risk profile for SUDEP that may help direct preventative efforts.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Transient topographical amnesia and cingulate cortex damage: a case report.

Transient topographical amnesia (TTA) is the temporary inability to find one's way in familiar or unfamiliar surroundings due to the inability to use well known environmental landmarks for route finding. The syndrome has not been described as having any obvious aetiology and has been thought to be caused by a vascular deficit in right hemispheric structures which are crucial for topographic recognition, i.e. parietal association and parahippocampal cortex. The patient described in the present study complained of several critical episodes of TTA and tonic rigidity of the left limbs. Neuropsychological assessment was normal except for a deficit in spatial memory tasks. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the brain showed an angioma at the border of areas 24d and 23 of the right cingulate cortex. Because area 23 is strategically located in a network that links the parietal associative (area 7a) and parahippocampal cortices, and because these cortical areas are involved in topographical orienting processes, we suggest that a transient functional inactivation of the network caused by epileptic discharges spreading from the damaged cingulate cortex towards the parahippocampal and parietal association cortex could account for the spatial disorder. Similar discharges spreading from area 24d towards the primary motor cortex and/or the spinal cord could account for the episodes of tonic rigidity of the left limbs.

Amnesia↗

PubMed1996

The IHS classification criteria for migraine headaches in adolescents need minor modifications.

The operational and diagnostic criteria for migraine and all other headache disorders released in 1988 by the International Headache Society are universally considered reliable and exhaustive. These criteria, however, cannot be considered as satisfactory for population-based studies on migraine prevalence, especially if adolescents are the subjects of the study. Using these diagnostic criteria, we conducted an epidemiological study in order to assess the prevalence of migraine headache in a student population aged 11 to 14 years. Our survey made it possible to code IHS 1.1 (migraine without aura) in 2.35%, IHS 1.2 (migraine with aura) in 0.62%, IHS 1.7 (migrainous disorders not fulfilling migraine criteria) in 1.52%, and IHS 13 (headache not classifiable) in 1.38% of the examined pupils. In adolescents, the low prevalence estimates of migraine headache coded IHS 1.1 and the relatively high prevalence estimates of headaches coded IHS 1.7 and IHS 13 have appeared to be a consequence of the rigidity of some operational diagnostic criteria of the recent IHS classification rather than of the geographical, environmental, or socioeconomical peculiarities of the cohort. Therefore, in order to improve the reliability and the exhaustiveness of the IHS classification by increasing its sensitivity, we believe that minor modifications of the diagnostic criteria are necessary. Within these revised criteria, the subitem "moderate or severe intensity" of pain headache should become mandatory, whereas the lower limit of the criterion "duration of pain" should be reduced to 1 hour.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

Monosymptomatic presentation of type I Arnold-Chiari malformation: report of two cases.

Two cases of type I ACM are described, one of which presented with dizziness in late childhood (case 1), the other with mild intention tremor in adulthood (case 2). Cerebellar ectopia should be considered in monosymptomatic patients even in the absence of other symptoms and signs of C.N.S. dysfunction. Magnetic resonance imaging of the craniocervical junction should be performed because it may be diagnostic for type I ACM.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1993

Influence of ventral tegmental area (A10 region) on flight behaviour elicited by hypothalamic stimulation in the cat.

The influence of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) (dopaminergic A10 group neurons) on flight behaviour, induced by hypothalamic stimulation, was studied in the cat. Co-stimulation of hypothalamus and VTA (ipsi- or contralateral) induced an increase of the flight latency. Slow-motion analysis of flight behaviour showed that this increase was due to the augmentation of the fixation latency (FL) whereas the upright latency (UL) was not modified. Sulpiride injection (50 mg/kg i.p.) provoked the disappearance of VTA effect without affecting the basal behavioural sequence. The results show that DA A10 group neurons increase the attentive component of the flight reaction, suggesting a possible influence of the DA A10 system on the mechanisms modulating focused attention in the animal.

Anesthesia↗