Assessment of External Load During Matches in Two Consecutive Seasons Using the Mediacoach® Video Analysis System in a Spanish Professional Soccer Team: Implications for Injury Prevention.

(1) Background: Knowledge of competition loads is a relevant aspect of injury prevention. We aimed to describe the training and match injury incidence and physical demand variables observed during a competition using a multi-camera video analysis system (Mediacoach®) (LaLigaTM, Madrid, Spain) in a professional Spanish soccer team during two consecutive seasons. (2) Methods: 30 players (age: 26.07 ± 3.78 years) participated in the study. Physical variables of 74 matches were collected retrospectively. Injury characteristics of both seasons were also collected. Differences in these variables between the two seasons and by player position and correlations between variables were explored. (3) Results: There were statistically significant differences between the two seasons in the total distance traveled and the distance traveled at a high-intensity sprint (p < 0.05). During the two seasons, there was an average of 4.7 ± 2.2 injuries. The total distance traveled was different according to the playing position, and statistically significant correlations were found in the total distance and sprint at a high intensity for certain positions with different injury severity (4) Conclusions: The match performance data recorded by the Mediacoach® system may provide relevant information by player position to technical and medical staff for injury prevention.

Long-term results of posteromedial hypothalamic deep brain stimulation for patients with resistant aggressiveness.

OBJECT: Erethism describes severe cases of unprovoked aggressive behavior, usually associated with some degree of mental impairment and gross brain damage. The etiology can be epileptic, postencephalitic, or posttraumatic, or the condition can be caused by brain malformations or perinatal insults. Erethism is often refractory to medication, and patients must often be interned in institutions, where they are managed with major restraining measures. The hypothalamus is a crucial group of nuclei that coordinate behavioral and autonomic responses and play a central role in the control of aggressive behavior. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the posteromedial hypothalamus (PMH) has been proposed as a treatment for resistant erethism, although experience with this treatment around the world is scarce. The objective of this study was to examine the long-term outcome of PMH DBS in 6 patients with severe erethism treated at the authors' institution. METHODS: Medical records of 6 patients treated with PMH DBS for intractable aggressiveness were reviewed. The therapeutic effect on behavior was assessed by the Inventory for Client and Agency Planning preoperatively and at the last follow-up visit. RESULTS: Two patients died during the follow-up period due to causes unrelated to the neurosurgical treatment. Five of 6 patients experienced a significant reduction in aggressiveness (the mean Inventory for Client and Agency Planning general aggressiveness score was -47 at baseline and -25 at the last follow-up; mean follow-up 3.5 years). Similar responses were obtained with low- and high-frequency stimulation. In 4 cases, the patients' sleep patterns became more regular, and in 1 case, binge eating and polydipsia ceased. One of the 3 patients who had epilepsy noticed a 30% reduction in seizure frequency. Another patient experienced a marked sympathetic response with high-frequency stimulation during the first stimulation trial, but this subsided when stimulation was set at low frequency. A worsening of a previous headache was noted by 1 patient. There were no other side effects. CONCLUSIONS: In this case series, 5 of 6 patients with pathological aggressiveness had a reduction of their outbursts of violence after PMH DBS, without significant adverse effects. Prospective controlled studies with a larger number of patients are needed to confirm these results.

Intracranial intermediate-grade meningeal melanocytoma with increased cellular proliferative index: an illustrative case associated with a nevus of Ota.

Solitary primary melanocytic tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) represent a spectrum of lesions ranging from well-differentiated melanocytoma to melanoma. The association of a meningeal melanocytoma with an ipsilateral nevus of Ota is extremely rare, with only six cases reported in the literature to date. Only a minority of melanocytic tumors correspond to lesions of intermediate-grade malignancy, whose biological behavior and outcome remain undetermined. We report a new case of a 25-year-old man with a giant fronto-temporal intracranial meningeal melanocytoma associated with a congenital nevus of Ota, who suffered an acute neurological deterioration requiring an emergent surgical procedure. Despite total removal of the lesion, the patient did not recover from the operation due to a malignant infarct of the right hemisphere. The lesion showed no histological criteria of malignancy but did exhibit an elevated (8%) MIB-1/Ki-67 cell proliferative index, which suggested an intermediate-grade melanocytoma. In addition, its metabolic profile, determined by in vivo proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), was similar to that observed in most high-grade gliomas. To our knowledge, this is the first case of a meningeal melanocytoma of intermediate grade associated with a nevus of Ota reported in the literature. Only two additional intermediate-grade melanocytomas showing an elevated MIB-1/Ki-67 labeling index have been previously reported. The MIB-1/Ki-67 labeling index may have potential prognostic value in helping the clinician to predict an aggressive clinical behavior and/or malignant progression for primary melanocytic neoplasms of the CNS.

Cavernous angiomas of the lateral ventricles.

BACKGROUND: Cavernous angiomas are vascular malformations which rarely involve the cavities of the lateral ventricles. Knowledge of the specific clinical and neuroradiological features displayed by these lesions is limited by the scarcity of patients included in the reported series. OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: The aim of this study was to compile and analyse the epidemiological, clinical, neuroradiological and surgical characteristics of these lesions as provided by the well-described examples reported in the scientific literature. A total of 49 were gathered, including three patients operated on recently in our Department. FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS: Cavernomas developing within the ventricular cavities attain a larger size than parenchymal counterpart lesions, causing symptoms and signs derived mainly from the mass effect. The characteristic parenchymal hypointense rim is less frequently identified on T2-weighted echo-gradient MRI sequences. Total surgical excision is the treatment of choice for these lesions, yet the surgical routes employed may still be associated with a high rate of neurological complications.

Low-frequency bilateral hypothalamic stimulation for treatment of drug-resistant aggressiveness in a young man with mental retardation.

Stereotactic bilateral electrode implantation in the medial portion of the posterior hypothalamus was performed on a 22-year-old male with drug-resistant aggressiveness. To localize the targets during implantation, microrecording was performed, and the clinical and electroencephalographic responses to intraoperative stimulation were monitored. The patient had an improved response to low-frequency stimulation that was sustained 18 months later at a follow-up examination.

Skin erosion over implants in deep brain stimulation patients.

We analyzed factors associated with skin erosion in 55 patients treated with deep brain stimulation (Kinetra or Soletra) for Parkinson's (PD) or other diseases. Nine of 55 patients developed erosion, all of whom were PD patients who had been fitted with a Kinetra device (r = 0.9292; p < 0.005). Erosions may be due to an increased pressure over the skin resulting from the larger size and weight of the Kinetra device. Alternatively, erosions in patients with the Kinetra device and bilateral leads may arise from the larger size of the 2 extension wires into the same subcutaneous tunnel and from the larger size of the 2 close parieto-occipital connections on the same cranial side. In PD patients, erosions were not related to age, immobility or PD severity. Specific studies examining the role of the skin of PD patients in erosion development and the use of smaller stimulation systems may help minimize the erosion rate.