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Biomedical subjects

N Soroker

Publications and source records attributed to N Soroker.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Mesh-glove. 2. Modulation of residual upper limb motor control after stroke with whole-hand electric stimulation.

The effects of whole-hand electrical stimulation via a wired mesh-glove upon the residual motor control of the upper extremity are described. Clinical observations were made in 2 patients with nonfunctional upper limbs, 4 and 2 years after stroke, who had been enrolled in the home mesh-glove program for 6 and 4 months, respectively. The stimulation paradigm is novel and the target of stimulation is the hand. Preliminary results indicate beneficial effects such as reduction in muscle hypertonia and facilitation of isolated hand movements.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Differential effect of right and left hemispheric lesions on two memory tasks: free recall of items and recall of spatial location.

The effect of lateralized cerebral damage on free recall of items and recall of spatial location, under intentional and incidental learning conditions, was investigated. Eleven right brain-damaged (RBD) patients, 10 left brain-damaged (LBD) patients, 14 young and 11 elderly normal controls, participated in this study. The overall performance of the control groups was better than that of the patient groups. For all groups, free recall was better under intentional than under incidental learning condition. On recall of spatial location the learning condition had a differential effect on the groups. The RBD group performed better than the LBD group under intentional learning condition, while the reverse was found under incidental learning condition. The young-control group showed an advantage over the elderly-control group under intentional but not under incidental learning condition. The results are discussed in regard to different approaches to the distinction between automatic and effortful memory processes and their lateralization in the cerebral hemispheres.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Polysomnography in locked-in syndrome.

Sleep patterns were evaluated in a case of 'locked-in' syndrome. This patient had an ischemic infarction involving the ventral portion of the upper half of the pons bilaterally, with a posteromedial extension into the tegmentum. Reticular structures, notably the median raphe nuclei, supposed to play a major regulatory role in sleep, were most probably involved. Unexpectedly, repeated polysomnographic studies revealed sleep patterns with only minor abnormalities.

Electroencephalography↗
PubMed1991

Differential effect of right and left hemispheric lesions on two memory tasks: free recall and frequency judgement.

We investigated the relationship between lateralized cerebral damage and two memory tasks; free recall and frequency judgement. Free recall is considered to be processed effortfully while frequency judgement is considered to be processed automatically (Hasher and Zacks). Nine right brain-damaged patients (RBD), nine left brain-damaged patients (LBD) and nine control subjects participated in this study. It was hypothesized that RBD would show an advantage over LBD on the free-recall task, whereas LBD would show an advantage over RBD on the frequency-judgement task. In accordance with our hypothesis, free-recall was more impaired in LBD than in RBD. In the frequency-judgement task, an effect of laterality of lesion was found in high (4-6) and low (0-1) frequencies, but not in the medium (2-3) frequencies. The anticipated LBD advantage was shown in judgement of the high frequencies, but unexpectedly RBD performed better than LBD in low frequencies. The results are discussed in terms of the relationship between effortful and automatic memory processes and cerebral lateralization.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

Covariance analysis of laboratory variance in steady-state serum phenytoin concentrations.

Inpatients (n = 57) on long term prophylaxis with 2 oral phenytoin preparations were followed up via monthly checks of serum drug concentrations. Duplicate serum aliquots were submitted to 2 laboratories, and covariance analysis was used to estimate laboratory error. The laboratory-associated variance of examinations using the 'EMIT' or 'TDX' systems was 7.1 to 10 (mg/L)2, while that of chromatographic assays was 37.1 (mg/L)2. Laboratory errors were distributed in a non-normal fashion. The ratio of the maximum rate of metabolism (Vmax) and the Michaelis-Menten constant (Km) tended to remain constant between individuals. A linear analytical model showed little more residual variance than one based on Michaelis-Menten pharmacokinetics.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1990

Stuttering as a manifestation of right-hemispheric subcortical stroke.

A right-handed man developed stuttering, without aphasia, as a result of a circumscribed subcortical infarction in the right hemisphere. He never stuttered before and has no family history of stuttering. Damage to callosal pathways coordinating the activity of both hemispheres during speech is proposed as a possible explanation for the stuttering.

Aged↗
PubMed1987

Magnetic resonance imaging in head injured patients with normal late computed tomography scans.

In 11 patients who had undergone blunt head injuries, computed tomography (CT) scans of the brain performed 4-24 months posttrauma were normal. The patients showed a variety of cognitive and behavioral disturbances. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies revealed abnormalities that were mainly confined to the frontal and temporal lobes. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed signals of increased intensity compatible with old contusions, loss of discrimination between gray and white matter, and irregular brain contours. It is suggested that MRI of the brain is a more sensitive technique than CT in the detection of brain lesions during the late posttraumatic period, allowing a better understanding of the patient's clinical and neurobehavioral disturbances.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

Granulocyte-macrophage colonies in cultures of human fetal liver cells: morphologic and ultrastructural analysis of proliferation and differentiation.

Fetal liver cells from 6-12-week-old human fetuses were cultured in soft agar to study growth patterns of the granulocyte-macrophage colony forming cells (CFU(c)) and to characterize the cellular components of these colonies by morphologic, cytochemical and ultrastructural methods. Liver cell suspensions prepared from 31 fetuses obtained by vaginal interruptions of pregnancies, were seeded in soft agar over feeder layers of normal human leukocytes. At all gestational ages examined, agar colony numbers ranged from 44 +/- 15 to 89 +/- 44/2 x 10(5) cells seeded. Colony frequencies, size and gross morphology closely resembled those derived from adult human marrow. Morphologic, cytochemical and ultrastructural examinations showed that 92% of the colonies were granulocytic with incomplete maturation, as found in adult human marrow colonies. Density fractionation of the cells produced a low density cellular fraction which gave a 3- to 5-fold improved cloning efficiency. This study shows that human fetal livers of 6-12 weeks gestational age contain CFU(c) comparable to that found in adult marrow in their frequency, size, density and dependence on colony stimulating factor, and which differentiate mainly into mature or immature granulocytes. It is suggested that the lack of granulopoiesis in vivo in the early human fetal liver is probably not related to CFU(c) deficiency or defective differentiation. An alternative explanation involving impaired regulatory mechanism(s) should be sought.

Cell Differentiation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Practice of prophylactic anticonvulsant treatment in head injury.

The policy of patient selection for prophylactic anticonvulsant treatment has been evaluated retrospectively in 124 head-injured patients admitted consecutively for rehabilitation after primary neurosurgical treatment. Prophylaxis had been instituted in about 60% (51/83) of high risk patients and in about 30% (12/41) of the patients who did not belong to the high risk categories. The use of existing risk data as guidelines for decisions about anticonvulsant prophylaxis is discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hemispheric contributions to pragmatics.

Twenty-seven patients with right-hemisphere damage (RBD) and thirty-one patients with left-hemisphere damage (LBD) received a new pragmatics battery in Hebrew consisting of two parts: (1) comprehension and production of basic speech acts (BSAs), including tests of assertions, questions, requests, and commands, and (2) comprehension of implicatures, including implicatures of quantity, quality, relevance, and manner. Each test had a verbal and a nonverbal version. Patients also received Hebrew versions of the Western Aphasia Battery and of the Right Hemisphere Communication Battery. Both LBD and RBD patients were impaired relative to controls but did not differ from each other in their overall scores on BSAs and on Implicatures when scores were corrected by aphasia and neglect indices. There was a systematic localization of BSAs in the left hemisphere (LH) but not in the right hemisphere (RH). There was poor localization of Implicatures in either hemisphere. In LBD patients, BSAs were associated with language functions measured with the WAB, suggesting the radical possibility that the classic localization of language functions in aphasia is influenced by the localization of the BSAs required by aphasia language tests. Both BSAs and implicatures show greater functional independence from other pragmatic, language and cognitive functions in the RBD than in the LBD patients. Thus, the LH is more likely to contain an unmodular domain-nonspecific set of central cognitive mechanisms for applying means-ends rationality principles to intentional activity.

Brain↗