Unconventional non-amino acidic PET radiotracers for molecular imaging in gliomas.

PURPOSE: The objective of this review was to explore the potential clinical application of unconventional non-amino acid PET radiopharmaceuticals in patients with gliomas. METHODS: A comprehensive search strategy was used based on SCOPUS and PubMed databases using the following string: ("perfusion" OR "angiogenesis" OR "hypoxia" OR "neuroinflammation" OR proliferation OR invasiveness) AND ("brain tumor" OR "glioma") AND ("Positron Emission Tomography" OR PET). From all studies published in English, the most relevant articles were selected for this review, evaluating the mostly used PET radiopharmaceuticals in research centers, beyond amino acid radiotracers and 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose ([18F]FDG), for the assessment of different biological features, such as perfusion, angiogenesis, hypoxia, neuroinflammation, cell proliferation, tumor invasiveness, and other biological characteristics in patients with glioma. RESULTS: At present, the use of non-amino acid PET radiopharmaceuticals specifically designed to assess perfusion, angiogenesis, hypoxia, neuroinflammation, cell proliferation, tumor invasiveness, and other biological features in glioma is still limited. CONCLUSION: The use of investigational PET radiopharmaceuticals should be further explored considering their promising potential and studies specifically designed to validate these preliminary findings are needed. In the clinical scenario, advancements in the development of new PET radiopharmaceuticals and new imaging technologies (e.g., PET/MR and the application of the artificial intelligence to medical images) might contribute to improve the clinical translation of these novel radiotracers in the assessment of gliomas.

Low dose gabapentin for shoulder-hand syndrome induced by phenobarbital: a three-month study.

Both the pathogenetic interpretation and treatment of phenobarbital-induced rheumatism are uncertain. The reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome which complicates antiepileptic drug therapy is a problem for rheumatologists. The aim of our study was to test the effect of gabapentin as an additional therapy in patients suffering from phenobarbital-induced shoulder-hand syndrome when these patients were treated with gabapentin instead of receiving phenobarbital only. After a 3-month observation period, the pain and the movement range from the shoulder to the wrist and to the hand improved more than in the control group using acetaminophen. Further studies are required to confirm this observation.

A new type of very low-power modulated laser: soft-tissue changes induced in osteoarthritic patients revealed by sonography.

Patients with symptomatic osteoarthritis of the cervical spine were studied by ultrasound examination. The region of interest was the soft connective tissue layer above the right and the left superior trapezium that revealed a significant difference in thickness between the left and right side. The aching side was treated with a new type of very low-power, modulated laser for 3 min. Immediately after application, the sonographic examination revealed a significant symmetrization of the subcutaneous tissue.

Low-power laser in osteoarthritis of the cervical spine.

Patients with symptomatic osteoarthritis of the cervical spine were treated with very low-power modulated laser (LPL). Two applications were performed at an interval of 20 days. Changes in pain and ultrasound thickness of the soft connective tissue layer above the right and the left superior trapezium were studied. No worsening of pain was observed. Pain improved after the first application of LPL in 9 out of 14 patients, but the difference was not significant. Pain improvement remained stable between the first assessment and the second assessment, which was performed after 20 days. In comparison with the first application, at the second application the number of patients with improved pain after LPL increased to 12 out of 14 (p < 0.01). An appreciable difference in the thickness of the subcutaneous soft tissue layer overlying the two superior trapezia was demonstrated in all patients at the first examination. Comparison of the measurements before and after the application of LPL showed significant differences.

Joint involvement patterns in nodal versus erosive osteoarthritis of the hands.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the joint count for affected joints and involvement distribution in erosive osteoarthritis (EOA) versus nodal osteoarthritis (NOA) of the hands in patients matched for sex, age, and disease duration. After recruitment of 101 consecutive outpatients affected with EOA, 101 patients affected by NOA were selected and matched for age, sex, and disease duration. Joint count for distal interphalangeal (DIP), proximal interphalangeal (PIP), and first carpo-metacarpal (CMC-1) joints, presenting Kellgren and Lawrence grade 2-4 OA, was performed. In our study, the number of affected joints was higher in NOA, with significant differences for some articular districts, especially in PIP joints of the fourth finger, and DIP joints of the second, third and fourth fingers.

Three-month follow-up of shoulder-hand syndrome induced by phenobarbital and treated with gabapentin.

In the present study we evaluated the 3-month follow-up of 14 subjects with phenobarbital-induced shoulder-hand syndrome after discontinuation of their previous pharmacological treatment (group 1: gabapentin 100 mg/day; group 2: acetaminophen 3 g/day for 3 months). The aim of this study was to evaluate pain and joint function in each group after cessation of treatment and to compare the results in the two groups. The result for pain and joint function was better in the seven patients previously treated with gabapentin.

Very low level laser therapy attenuates edema and pain in experimental models.

In this study, we tested a new square wave microprocessor-controlled red laser with an extremely low peak power output (<3 mW; very low level laser therapy [vLLLT]) in experimental pain in the rat. Acute inflammation was induced by intraplantar injection of carrageenan, chronic inflammation was induced by complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) and neuropathic pain was produced by sciatic nerve chronic constriction injury (CCI). In our study vLLLT was effective in reducing edema and hyperalgesia in acute and chronic inflammation if administered at the points usually selected for acupuncture. Moreover, spontaneous pain and thermal hyperalgesia were reduced in CCI rats treated with vLLLT In conclusion, vLLLT reduced edema and induced analgesia in experimental plantar pain in rats. We interpret this to mean that enkephalin mRNA level was strongly upregulated in the external layers of the dorsal horn of the spinal cord in CFA and CCI animals, and that vLLLT further increased the mRNA level in single neurons.

Internal models in the control of posture.

The aim of the paper is to investigate the application of control schemes based on "internal models" to the stabilization of the standing posture. The computational complexities of the control problems are analyzed, showing that muscle stiffness alone is insufficient to carry out the task. The paper also re-visits the concept of the cerebellum as a Smith's predictor.