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To assess the feasibility and effects on manual dexterity and the quality of life (QoL) of a 12-week home calligraphic training program in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). A pilot study with participants recruited from the Movement Disorders consultation at the Hospital 12 de Octubre (Madrid). The main outcome, manual dexterity, was assessed using the Purdue Pegboard Test (PPT). Secondary outcomes included clinical rating scales that contemplate aspects related to manual dexterity (DextQ-24, UPDRSII, UPDRSIII), and QoL (PDQ-39 and EuroQoL-5D). Thirty PD patients (57% males) with a mean age of 66.11 (9.76) years and 93% adherence rate. The PPT scores improved significantly (p < 0.0001) from T0 (start of the study) to T1 (after 24 weeks). No statistically significant change was found in DextQ-24, UPDRS-II and UPDRS-III, but a clear improvement was observed in the QoL measurement: EuroQoL-5D (p < 0.0001), PDQ-39 (p < 0.0001) and modified PDQ-39 (p = 0.022). This is the first study to demonstrate the feasibility and improvement in hand dexterity assessed by the PPT for patients diagnosed with PD after a 12-week home calligraphic training program. A significant improvement was noted in the QoL measurements, such as the PDQ-39, modified PDQ-39, and EuroQoL-5D. Most patients with Parkinson's disease suffer from impaired manual dexterity, making it difficult to perform activities of daily living such as eating, buttoning, or shaving. A 12-week home calligraphic training program could improve hand dexterity in these patients. The advantage of this home calligraphic trainingis is that it is an easy-to-perform, low-cost and no side effects. This training also improves their quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPurposeCase DescriptionConclusionsTo examine the link between tremor and sex chromosome abnormalities, emphasizing the necessity of comprehensive physical examination.An 18-year-old man exhibited an isolated action tremor in both hands. Despite having no familial history of tremors and no identifiable secondary causes, his tall stature and learning difficulties suggested a genetic origin. His karyotype confirmed the diagnosis of Jacob’s syndrome (XYY syndrome). Therapies with primidone and propranolol were ineffective for his tremor.Tremor can be caused by various conditions, and aneuploidies might often be overlooked as a cause. They should be considered in young patients with concrete phenotypes and negative familiar history of tremors. Karyotyping is a cost-effective diagnostic tool crucial for genetic counselling. Common treatments for tremors often yield unsatisfactory results in these cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neurodegenerative parkinsonisms affect mainly cognitive and motor functions and are syndromes of overlapping symptoms and clinical manifestations such as tremor, rigidness, and bradykinesia. These include idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) and the atypical parkinsonisms, namely progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), corticobasal degeneration (CBD), multiple system atrophy (MSA) and dementia with Lewy body (DLB). Differences in the striatal metabolism among these syndromes are evaluated using [ 18 F]FDG PET, caused by alterations to the dopaminergic activity and neuronal loss. A study cohort of three patients with PD, 29 with atypical parkinsonism (10 PSP, 6 CBD, 2 MSA, 7 DLB, and 4 non-classifiable), and a control group of 25 patients with normal striatal metabolism is available. Standardized uptake value ratios (SUVR) are extracted from the striatum, and the caudate and the putamen separately. SUVRs are compared among the study groups. In addition, hemispherical and caudate-putamen differences are evaluated in atypical parkinsonisms. Striatal hypermetabolism is detected in patients with PD, while atypical parkinsonisms show hypometabolism, compared to the control group. Hemispherical differences are observed in CBD, MSA and DLB, with the latter also showing statistically significant caudate-putamen asymmetry ( p = 0.018). These results indicate disease-specific metabolic uptake patterns in the striatum that can support the differential diagnosis.