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AIM: To explore the neuro-ophthalmological characteristics of acute macular neuroretinopathy(AMN)after SARS-CoV-2 infection.METHODS: A total of 8 patients(14 eyes), including 6 females and 2 males, who were diagnosed with AMN in the neuro-ophthalmology department of Xi'an No.1 Hospital(The First Affiliated Hospital of Northwest University)from December 27, 2022 to February 1, 2023 were included in the study. All patients had a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection before the disease, and the results of best corrected visual acuity(BCVA), non-contact indirect intraocular pressure measurement, fundus color photography, near infrared(IR), spectral-domain optical coherence tomography(SD-OCT), OCT angiography(OCTA), fundus fluorescein angiography(FFA), indocyanine green angiography(ICGA), visual field, visual evoked potential(VEP), and electroretinogram(ERG)were collected. Furthermore, the neuro-opthalmology characteristics of the included patients were analyzed and summarized.RESULTS: The included 8 patients aged from 20 to 43, with an average age of(30±6.63)years old. The patients had a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection 3 to 11(mean 5±3.51)d before the disease, and 6 out of 8 patients developed visual symptoms within 5 d of infection with SARS-CoV-2, with manifestated with decreased vision or visual scotoma. The visual acuity varied from 0.08 to 1.0, with visual field defect characterized by central, paracentral or peripheral scotoma. VEP showed prolongation latency of P100 or P2, and ERG revealed impaired function of retinal photoreceptor cell. In the early stage of the disease, the size and shape of early visual acuity, visual field, and extraretinal lesions in patients with AMN associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection may not match, and the lower the visual acuity, the later the VEP peaks.CONCLUSION: The neuro-ophthalmic features of SARS-CoV-2 infection-associated AMN require the attention of clinicians. In addition to multi-mode fundus imaging, clinicians should use a variety of methods to comprehensively evaluate visual function and prognosis of patients.

目的 探讨动脉内溶栓（intra-arterial thrombolysis，IAT）治疗视网膜中央动脉阻塞（central retinal artery occlusion，CRAO）患者的临床特征及功能性视觉恢复情况。 方法 纳入2018年1月—2023年8月西北大学附属第一医院神经内科和神经眼科连续收治的非动脉炎性CRAO患者，根据入院后是否进行IAT治疗分为IAT组和非IAT组。功能性视觉定义为 视力≥20/100。比较分析两组患者的临床特征和不同时间段（入院、出院时和出院1个月时）功能性视觉恢复情况。 结果 共纳入131例（131只眼）非动脉炎性CRAO患者，男性93例（71.0%），平均年龄为（61.6±12.6）岁， 其中IAT组57例（43.5%），非IAT组74例（56.5%）。与非IAT组患者相比，IAT组患者年龄更低[（58.4±12.5）岁 vs.（64.1±12.2）岁，P=0.011]、合并卒中病史者比例更低[10（17.5%）vs. 25（33.8%）， P=0.037]、发病至就诊时间更短[10.0（6.0～24.0）h vs. 55.0（20.2～162.0）h，P＜0.001]、醒后发病者比例更高[26（45.6%）vs. 15（20.3%），P=0.002]和患侧颈内动脉血管状态更佳（无狭窄∶轻度狭窄∶中-重度狭窄∶闭塞=41∶7∶7∶2 vs. 32∶11∶21∶10，P=0.006）。IAT组患者出院1个月时功能性视觉比例较非IAT组患者更高[25（43.9%）vs. 18（24.3%），P=0.018]，而入院和出院时差异无统计学意义 （P＞0.05）。多因素logistic回归分析显示，IAT组患者出院1个月时的功能性视觉较非IAT组患者显著改善（OR 3.24，95%CI 1.08～9.69，P=0.036）。IAT组患者术中发生眼动脉痉挛2例（3.5%）、穿刺部位皮肤出血2例（3.5%）和新发脑栓塞（均为无症状性栓塞）事件4例（7.0%）。 结论 是否进行IAT治疗的CRAO患者部分临床特征存在差异，IAT治疗可显著提高CRAO患者出院1个月时的功能性视觉，且手术安全性较好。提示临床医师需重视CRAO患者的IAT治疗，以期改善患者的视觉功能。 Abstract: Objective To investigate the clinical characteristics and functional visual recovery of patients with central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) treated with intra-arterial thrombolysis (IAT). Methods The non-arteriotic CRAO patients admitted to the Department of Neurology and Neuro-ophthalmology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Northwest University from January 2018 to August 2023 were included. They were divided into IAT group and non-IAT group according to whether IAT was performed after admission. Functional vision is defined as visual acuity≥20/100. The clinical features and functional visual recovery at different time periods (admission, discharge and 1 month after discharge) were compared and analyzed between the two groups. Results A total of 131 patients (131 eyes) with non-arteriotic CRAO were included, including 93 males (71.0%) with a mean age of (61.6±12.6) years. There were 57 patients (43.5%) in IAT group and 74 patients (56.5%) in non-IAT group. Compared with patients in non-IAT group, patients in IAT group had younger age [(58.4±12.5) years vs. (64.1±12.2) years, P=0.011], lower proportion of stroke history [10 (17.5%) vs. 25 (33.8%), P=0.037], shorter time from onset to visit [10.0 (6.0-24.0) h vs. 55.0 (20.2-162.0) h, P0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the functional vision of CRAO patients in the IAT group at 1 month after discharge was significantly improved compared with those in the non-IAT group (OR 3.24, 95%CI 1.08-9.69, P=0.036). In the IAT group, ophthalmic artery spasm occurred in 2 cases (3.5%), skin bleeding at the puncture site in 2 cases (3.5%), and new cerebral embolism (all asymptomatic embolism) occurred in 4 cases (7.0%). Conclusions Some clinical features of CRAO patients who were treated with or without IAT were different. IAT can significantly improve the functional vision of CRAO patients at 1 month after discharge, and the surgical safety is good. This suggests that clinicians should pay more attention to IAT in CRAO patients in order to improve their visual function.

A nine-year-old boy manifested with headache, progressive mild cognitive decline and hemiparesis, but without clinical epileptic seizures (with abnormal EEG waves). Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed bilateral cortical lesions mainly on the right hemisphere, and new lesions developed in frontal, parietal, occipital and temporal lobes around the old lesions presenting as a lace-like or ring-like enhancement in T1 with contrast over a disease course of five years. A suspected diagnosis of primary angiitis of the central nervous system was initially considered. Treated with high-dose corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulins and monthly pulse cyclophosphamide, his symptoms worsened with the intracranial lesion progression. Brain biopsy of the right frontal lobe was performed nearly five years after onset; prominent neuronal loss, a microglial nodule, as well as parenchymal and perivascular lymphocytic infiltrate within the cortex were found, which coincided with RE pathology changes. Encouragingly, after a regimen of rituximab, lesions on the follow-up brain MRI tended to be stable. Apparently, it was immune-mediated, but did not strictly fit any known disease entity, although it was similar to RE. We summarize this unique case, including clinical characteristics, imaging and pathology findings. We also discuss the diagnosis and treatment, focusing on comparison to RE as well as other possible neurological diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background There are a variety of treatment options for Bell's palsy. Evidence from randomized controlled trials indicates corticosteroids can be used as a proven therapy for Bell's palsy. Acupuncture is one of the most commonly used methods to treat Bell's palsy in China. Recent studies suggest that staging treatment is more suitable for Bell's palsy, according to different path-stages of this disease. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of prednisolone and staging acupuncture in the recovery of the affected facial nerve, and to verify whether prednisolone in combination with staging acupuncture is more effective than prednisolone alone for Bell's palsy in a large number of patients. Methods/Design In this article, we report the design and protocol of a large sample multi-center randomized controlled trial to treat Bell's palsy with prednisolone and/or acupuncture. In total, 1200 patients aged 18 to 75 years within 72 h of onset of acute, unilateral, peripheral facial palsy will be assessed. There are six treatment groups, with four treated according to different path-stages and two not. These patients are randomly assigned to be in one of the following six treatment groups, i.e. 1) placebo prednisolone group, 2) prednisolone group, 3) placebo prednisolone plus acute stage acupuncture group, 4) prednisolone plus acute stage acupuncture group, 5) placebo prednisolone plus resting stage acupuncture group, 6) prednisolone plus resting stage acupuncture group. The primary outcome is the time to complete recovery of facial function, assessed by Sunnybrook system and House-Brackmann scale. The secondary outcomes include the incidence of ipsilateral pain in the early stage of palsy (and the duration of this pain), the proportion of patients with severe pain, the occurrence of synkinesis, facial spasm or contracture, and the severity of residual facial symptoms during the study period. Discussion The result of this trial will assess the efficacy of using prednisolone and staging acupuncture to treat Bell's palsy, and to determine a best combination therapy with prednisolone and acupuncture for treating Bell's palsy. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01201642

Background and purpose Methods Results Conclusions Considering the reliance of serum uric acid (SUA) levels on renal clearance function, its role in stroke outcomes remains controversial. This study investigated the association of renal function–normalized SUA (SUA to serum creatinine ratio, SUA/SCr), a novel renal function index, with the 1‐year outcomes in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).This is a prospective, multicenter observational study. Renal function–normalized SUA levels were determined by calculating the ratio of SUA to SCr. One‐year outcomes included stroke recurrence, all‐cause mortality, and poor prognosis. Multivariable Cox regression analyses and restriction cubic splines for curve fitting were used to evaluate SUA/SCr's association with 1‐year stroke outcomes.Among 2294 enrolled patients, after adjustment for potential confounders, multivariable Cox regression analyses showed that each one‐unit increase in SUA/SCr corresponded to a 19% decrease in 1‐year stroke recurrence in patients with AIS. SUA/SCr was analyzed as a continuous variable and categorized into quartiles (Q1–Q4). Compared with the Q1 reference group, Q2, Q3, and Q4 showed significantly lower 1‐year stroke recurrence risks. The trend test indicated significant differences in the 1‐year stroke recurrence trend from Q1 to Q4. In these patients, SUA/SCr did not show a significant association with poor prognosis or all‐cause mortality. Curve fitting revealed SUA/SCr had a negative but nonlinear association with 1‐year stroke recurrence.In patients with AIS, low SUA/SCr may be an independent risk factor for 1‐year stroke recurrence. Changes in SUA/SCr had no significant impact on 1‐year poor prognosis and all‐cause mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) is a medical condition characterized by sudden blockage of the central retinal artery, which leads to a significant and often irreversible loss of vision. Observational studies have indicated that diabetes mellitus is a risk factor for CRAO; however, there is no research on the causal relationship between diabetes mellitus, particularly type 2 diabetes, and CRAO. This study aimed to perform Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to clarify the causal relationship between type 2 diabetes and CRAO., Methods: Genetic variants associated with type 2 diabetes were selected from two different datasets. A recent genome-wide association study of CRAO conducted using the FinnGen database was used as the outcome data. A two-sample MR was performed to evaluate the causal relationship between type 2 diabetes and CRAO. Inverse variance weighting was the primary method, and MR-Egger, maximum likelihood, and median weighting were used as complementary methods. A multivariate MR (MVMR) analysis was performed to further evaluate the robustness of the results. Cochran's Q test, MR-Egger intercept test, and MR-PRESSO global test were used for the sensitivity analyses., Results: Genetically predicted type 2 diabetes was causally associated with CRAO(odds ratio [OR] =2.108, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.221-3.638, P=7.423×10 -3 ), which was consistent with the results from the validation dataset (OR=1.398, 95%CI: 1.015-1.925, P=0.040). The MVMR analysis suggested that type 2 diabetes may be an independent risk factor for CRAO (adjusted OR=1.696; 95%CI=1.150-2.500; P=7.655×10 -3 ), which was assumed by the validation dataset (adjusted OR=1.356; 95%CI=1.015-1.812; P=0.039)., Conclusion: Our results show that genetically predicted type 2 diabetes may be causally associated with CRAO in European populations. This suggests that preventing and controlling type 2 diabetes may reduce the risk of CRAO., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Lu, Liu, Lin, Peng, Lu, Guo, Liu, Zhang and Wu.)

Aquaporin-4 antibodies (AQP4-Abs) are a diagnostic marker for patients with a demyelinating disease called neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD). Anti-Argonaute antibodies (AGO-Abs) present as potential biomarkers of the overlap syndrome between NMOSD and other autoimmune diseases. In this paper, we present the case of an adult woman with numbness, tingling, and burning sensations in her arms and subsequent bilateral internuclear ophthalmoplegia. Brain-cervical-thoracic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed T2 hyperintensities in the dorsal brainstem and around the midbrain aqueduct and longitudinally transverse myelitis with homogeneous enhancement on gadolinium-enhanced MRI. The contemporaneous detection of AQP4- and AGO-Abs led to a definite diagnosis of overlap syndrome of NMOSD with AGO-Abs. The patient was treated with immunosuppressive agents, including corticosteroids and immunoglobulins, and achieved remission. This case highlights a novel phenotype of NMOSD with AGO-Abs overlap syndrome, which presents with relapsing brainstem syndrome and longitudinally extensive myelitis with acute severe neurological involvement. The promising prognosis of the disease could serve as a distinct clinical profile. Broad screening for antibodies against central nervous system autoimmune antigens is recommended in suspected patients with limited or atypical clinical manifestations., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Lin and Wu.)

Background and Purpose: Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide and the leading cause of mortality and long-term disability in China, but its underlying risk genes and pathways are far from being comprehensively understood. We here describe the design and methods of whole genome sequencing (WGS) for 10 914 patients with acute ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack from the Third China National Stroke Registry (CNSR-III)., Methods: Baseline clinical characteristics of the included patients in this study were reported. DNA was extracted from white blood cells of participants. Libraries are constructed using qualified DNA, and WGS is conducted on BGISEQ-500 platform. The average depth is intended to be greater than 30× for each subject. Afterwards, Sentieon software is applied to process the sequencing data under the Genome Analysis Toolkit best practice guidance to call genotypes of single nucleotide variants (SNVs) and insertion-deletions. For each included subject, 21 fingerprint SNVs are genotyped by MassARRAY assays to verify that DNA sample and sequencing data originate from the same individual. The copy number variations and structural variations are also called for each patient. All of the genetic variants are annotated and predicted by bioinformatics software or by reviewing public databases., Results: The average age of the included 10 914 patients was 62.2±11.3 years, and 31.4% patients were women. Most of the baseline clinical characteristics of the 10 914 and the excluded patients were balanced., Conclusions: The WGS data together with abundant clinical and imaging data of CNSR-III could provide opportunity to elucidate the molecular mechanisms and discover novel therapeutic targets for stroke., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)