Headache as the sole clinical manifestation of acute myocardial infarction: one case with cardiac cephalalgia and literature review.

OBJECTIVE: Cardiac cephalalgia, once seen as a rare symptom of coronary artery disease, is now more recognized. It often comes with chest discomfort and autonomic dysfunction, worsened by physical activity. However, not all cases have chest symptoms or are activity induced. This report presents a case of cardiac cephalalgia and reviews 46 previous cases. METHOD: We discuss a unique case where a patient had headache attacks without chest symptoms, autonomic dysfunction, or triggers. We reviewed English case reports of cardiac cephalalgia from 1982 to 2022 using PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed). RESULTS: A 69-year-old man presented with a sudden headache without triggers or typical symptoms. Coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) showed diffuse stenosis in the left anterior descending and the first diagonal branch arteries. His headache improved after percutaneous coronary intervention. Cardiac cephalalgia is usually marked by severe headaches, autonomic signs, and often affects the occipital region. Electrocardiogram (ECG) might not always show abnormalities, and chest pain is not always present. In such cases, elevated cardiac enzymes can be crucial for diagnosis. CONCLUSION: When a headache is the sole symptom of an acute coronary event, consider moderate to severe intensity, older age at onset, occipital localization, and autonomic signs. ECG, cardiac enzymes, and coronary CTA are valuable for accurate diagnosis and treatment.

Profile of Chinese Cluster Headache Register Individual Study (CHRIS): Clinical characteristics, diagnosis and treatment status data of 816 patients in China.

BACKGROUND: The clinical profile of cluster headache may differ among different regions of the world, warranting interest in the data obtained from the initial Chinese Cluster Headache Register Individual Study (CHRIS) for better understanding. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, prospective, longitudinal cohort study on cluster headache across all 31 provinces of China, aiming to gather clinical characteristics, treatment approaches, imaging, electrophysiological and biological samples. RESULTS: In total 816 patients were enrolled with a male-to-female ratio of 4.33:1. The mean age at consultation was 34.98 ± 9.91 years, and 24.89 ± 9.77 years at onset. Only 2.33% were diagnosed with chronic cluster headache, and 6.99% had a family history of the condition. The most common bout was one to two times per year (45.96%), lasting two weeks to one month (44.00%), and occurring frequently in spring (76.23%) and winter (73.04%). Of these, 68.50% experienced one to two attacks per day, with the majority lasting one to two hours (45.59%). The most common time for attacks was between 9 am and 12 pm (75.86%), followed by 1 am and 3 am (43.48%). Lacrimation (78.80%) was the most predominant autonomic symptom reported. Furthermore, 39.22% of patients experienced a delay of 10 years or more in receiving a correct diagnosis. Only 35.67% and 24.26% of patients received common acute and preventive treatments, respectively. CONCLUSION: Due to differences in ethnicity, genetics and lifestyle conditions, CHRIS has provided valuable baseline data from China. By establishing a dynamic cohort with comprehensive multidimensional data, it aims to advance the management system for cluster headache in China.

Strategies for developing layered oxide cathodes, carbon-based anodes, and electrolytes for potassium ion batteries.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become the most popular portable secondary energy storage facilities. However, the limited lithium resource results in possible unsustainable development. Potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) are considered promising alternatives to LIBs because of their high resource availability, low cost, and environmentally friendly features. In this field, high energy density layered cathodes and carbon-based anodes are also the main research objectives. However, compared to the most appealing alternative sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), despite having various theoretical advantages, PIBs exhibit poorer electrochemical performance in practice. Their poor capacity retention and narrow working voltage range seriously limit their applications. The performance of the electrodes is usually considered an important factor for battery performance, life, and safety. To solve these problems, many significant research studies have been carried out in the last decade, achieving numerous breakthroughs. Nevertheless, there are still many drawbacks and unclear mechanisms. In this comprehensive review, we examine the current state of high-performance layered oxide cathodes, electrolytes, and carbon-based anodes, to identify potential candidates for PIBs. Our focus lies on their structural characteristics, interface properties, underlying mechanisms, and modification techniques. The viewpoints of these advanced strategies are integrated, and concise development suggestions and strategies are subsequently proposed.

Latex agglutination: diagnose the early cryptococcus neoformans test of capsular polysaccharide antigen.

This paper aims to discuss the early diagnosis value of latex agglutination test in Cryptococcal meningitis. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 112 patients with definite Cryptococcal meningitis and 26 patients with tubercular meningitis and virus meningitis were collected, latex agglutination test is adopted to detect Cryptococcal capsular polysaccharide antigen. Then it was compared with fungal culture and direct microscopy method for evaluating the sensitivity and specificity of the diagnosis. The sensitivity of three methods including latex agglutination test, fungal culture and direct microscopy was 91.1%,69.6% and 73.2% respectively. The specificity of latex agglutination test was 96.0%, 100% and 100% respectively. That latex agglutination test to detect Cryptococcal capsular polysaccharide antigen could be taken as the early diagnostic method of Cryptococcus neoformans meningitis.