Psycho-Cognitive Profile and NGF and BDNF Levels in Tears and Serum: A Pilot Study in Patients with Graves' Disease.

Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and Brain derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) mature/precursor imbalance in tears and serum is suggested as a risk factor and symptomatology aggravation in ophthalmology and neuropsychiatric disturbances. Cognitive and mood alterations are reported by patients with Graves' Orbitopathy (GO), indicating neurotrophin alterations might be involved. To address this question, the expression levels of NGF and BDNF and their precursors in serum and tears of GO patients were analyzed and correlated with the ophthalmological and psycho-cognitive symptoms. Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A) and Depression (HAM-D), Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), and Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) test were used as a score. NGF and BDNF levels were measured using ELISA and Western Blot and statistically analyzed for psychiatric/ocular variable trend association. GO patients show memorization time and level of distraction increase, together with high irritability and impulsiveness. HAM-A and CANTAB variables association, and some TCI dimensions are also found. NGF and BDNF expression correlates with ophthalmological symptoms only in tears, while mature/precursor NGF and BDNF correlate with the specific psycho-cognitive variables both in tears and serum. Our study is the first to show that changes in NGF and BDNF processing in tears and serum might profile ocular and cognitive alterations in patients.

Differences in visual information processing style between Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy with and without photosensitivity.

PURPOSE: Recently, altered visual cortical processes i.e., lack of habituation to visual evoked potentials (VEP), has been highlighted in both photosensitive epilepsy and in a specific i.e., analytic mode of processing visual inputs. In this study we aimed at evaluating the relationship between photosensitivity (PS) and analytic style of processing visual information, in a sample of 30 patients with Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy (IGE) and matched healthy controls. METHODS: At our Epilepsy unit of the Sapienza University of Rome, we consecutively enrolled 15 patients with IGE with PSand matched them with 15 patients with IGE without PS and 15 Healthy Volunteers. All patients underwent EEG recording in basal conditions during hyperventilation (3 Min), and intermittent light stimulation. The most effective frequencies comprised from 12 to 16 Hz. The instruments used to gather psychological cognitive behavioral data, consisted of participation in two tests: the Sternberg-Wagner Self-Assessment Inventory and the Mariani Learning Style Questionnaire. RESULTS: Compared to controls, both IGE groups show significantly higher scores for the analytic style (One-way ANOVA, F(2,44) = 110.3, p < 0.0001). Epilepsy groups thereby showed very distinctive cognitive styles as measured with the Sternberg test. In the visual style, scores of the photosensitive Individuals with IGE were significantly higher than the non-photosensitive individuals with IGE (p < 0.0001, Tukey's post hoc test). CONCLUSIONS: An association between analytic style of processing visual information and PS in IGE has been shown. The common neurophysiological features between these two factors, suggest the possibility to evaluate this cognitive behavior as a potential target for nonpharmacological therapeutic strategies in photosensitive epilepsy.

Analytic information processing style in epilepsy patients.

Relevant to the study of epileptogenesis is learning processing, given the pivotal role that neuroplasticity assumes in both mechanisms. Recently, evoked potential analyses showed a link between analytic cognitive style and altered neural excitability in both migraine and healthy subjects, regardless of cognitive impairment or psychological disorders. In this study we evaluated analytic/global and visual/auditory perceptual dimensions of cognitive style in patients with epilepsy. Twenty-five cryptogenic temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients matched with 25 idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) sufferers and 25 healthy volunteers were recruited and participated in three cognitive style tests: "Sternberg-Wagner Self-Assessment Inventory", the C. Cornoldi test series called AMOS, and the Mariani Learning style Questionnaire. Our results demonstrate a significant association between analytic cognitive style and both IGE and TLE and respectively a predominant auditory and visual analytic style (ANOVA: p values <0,0001). These findings should encourage further research to investigate information processing style and its neurophysiological correlates in epilepsy.

Lack of habituation of evoked visual potentials in analytic information processing style: evidence in healthy subjects.

Habituation is considered one of the most basic mechanisms of learning. Habituation deficit to several sensory stimulations has been defined as a trait of migraine brain and also observed in other disorders. On the other hand, analytic information processing style is characterized by the habit of continually evaluating stimuli and it has been associated with migraine. We investigated a possible correlation between lack of habituation of evoked visual potentials and analytic cognitive style in healthy subjects. According to Sternberg-Wagner self-assessment inventory, 15 healthy volunteers (HV) with high analytic score and 15 HV with high global score were recruited. Both groups underwent visual evoked potentials recordings after psychological evaluation. We observed significant lack of habituation in analytical individuals compared to global group. In conclusion, a reduced habituation of visual evoked potentials has been observed in analytic subjects. Our results suggest that further research should be undertaken regarding the relationship between analytic cognitive style and lack of habituation in both physiological and pathophysiological conditions.

Analytic information processing style in migraineurs.

Despite great advances in pathophysiological facets of migraine that have been made during recent years, as of today, migraine etiology is still not completely understood; moreover, to date the relationship between psychological factors and this primary headache must be further elucidated. However, abnormal information processing, as measured by evoked and event-related potentials, has been considered a key feature in migraine pathogenesis. The aim of this work was to study the relationships between analytic/global style of information processing and migraine, hypothesizing an analytic style, as highlighted by our previous study on cluster headache. This study applied three cognitive style tests never previously used in the context of migraine: "Sternberg-Wagner Self-Assessment Inventory", the C. Cornoldi test series called AMOS, and Brain-Dominance Questionnaire. 280 migraneurs with and without aura were tested and matched with two control groups: healthy subjects and tension-type headache patients. Our results demonstrated a strong correlation between analytic information processing style and migraine, indicating a preference toward a visual sensory approach in migraine without aura, in line with known neuroelectrophysiological data. These findings may suggest a role for this specific cognitive behavior in migraine pathogenesis, leading us to further investigate the neuroelectrophysiological, neurobiological, and epigenetic correlates.

Analytic cognitive style in cluster headache.

Previous reports on cluster headache have shown a hypothalamic dysfunction and a hitherto unrecognized defect in the information processing pathways measured by event-related potentials. As of today, the causes are still unknown; likewise, studies on the psychological factors involved in CH have not yielded relevant data. The aim of our study was to evaluate the presence of a possible correlation between CH and a specific manner of information processing, i.e., an analytic cognitive style. This study applies two cognitive style tests that have not previously been used in the context of cluster headache: "Sternberg-Wagner Self Assessment Inventory" and the C. Cornoldi AMOS test series. Twenty-three CH patients were involved in the study and were compared with two control groups: healthy subjects and tension type headache patients. Our findings clearly indicate a significant correlation between analytic cognitive style and CH, warranting further studies focusing on the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms.