Cerebrospinal fluid analysis and the determination of oligoclonal bands.

This document presents the guidelines for the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis and the determination of oligoclonal bands (OCBs) as pivotal tests in neuroinflammatory pathologies of the central nervous system. The guidelines have been developed following a consensus process built on questionnaire-based surveys, internet contacts, and discussions at workshops of the sponsoring Italian Association of Neuroimmunology (AINI) congresses. Essential clinical information on the pathologies in which the CSF analysis is indicated, and, particularly, on those characterized by the presence of OCBs in the intrathecal compartment, indications and limits of CSF analysis and OCB determination, instructions for result interpretation, and agreed laboratory protocols (Appendix) are reported for the communicative community of neurologists and clinical pathologists.

Italian Case Report with a Double Mutation in PSEN1 (K311R and E318G).

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia worldwide. The clinical spectrum of suspected AD has been extended from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to preclinical AD which includes people who have typical cognitive function but harbor the underlying biological features of AD. We report the first case of an Italian patient affected by MCI (MMSE 24\30), characterized by a double mutation p.Lys311Arg (K311R) and p.Glu318Gly (E318G) in Presenilin-1 but with the absence of abnormal accumulation of amyloid beta.

The Sexual Dimorphism in Cerebrospinal Fluid Protein Content Does Not Affect Intrathecal IgG Synthesis in Multiple Sclerosis.

(1) Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) that mainly affects young adults and females more than males. The detection of intrathecal IgG synthesis (IIS) on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis supports the diagnosis of MS. A sexual dimorphism has recently been described in CSF protein content. (2) Methods: Clinical and laboratory data from 340 MS patients (F = 231, M = 99) and 89 people with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) (F = 57, M = 32) were retrospectively analyzed to assess the presence of variables affected by sex and age. (3) Results: In MS, the albumin quotient (QAlb), reflecting the blood-CSF barrier (BCSFB) function, was higher in males (5.6 vs. 4.34) and correlated to age with a constant difference between sexes (F = 41.71). In CIS patients, QAlb increased with age only in males (r = 0.3567). Age was positively correlated to disease duration and severity in MS (r = 0.3502, r = 0.2986, respectively). No differences emerged for quantitative and qualitative IIS determinations. (4) Discussion: Although the main difference between males and females concerns the function of BCSFB assessed by QAlb, this sexual dimorphism does not affect the determination of the IIS evaluated both by quantitative and qualitative methods.

Primary aldosteronism as a cause of secondary osteoporosis.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with primary aldosteronism (PA) have a high prevalence of osteoporosis (OP) and fractures (Fx). We evaluated the presence of PA in patients admitted to our metabolic bone disease outpatient clinic. DESIGN: Study conducted on an in- and outpatient basis in a referral Italian endocrinology unit. METHODS: A total of 2632 patients were evaluated. 2310 were excluded because they were taking drugs known to affect bone or mineralocorticoids metabolism or were diagnosed to have a secondary cause of osteoporosis. The remaining 322 subjects (304 females, 18 males) took part in the study. Bone mineral density (BMD) and thoracic and lumbar spine vertebral morphometry were performed by dual X-ray absorptiometry. All patients were screened for PA with aldosterone-to-renin ratio. In those who had positive results, confirmatory tests were performed. RESULTS: Among 322 subjects, 213 were osteoporotics and 109 were not. PA was diagnosed in eleven out of 213 osteoporotic patients (5.2%) and one out of 109 non-osteoporotic subjects (0.9%, P = 0.066). PA was observed in the 26.1% of patients with the concomitant presence of osteoporosis, hypertension and hypercalciuria. Compared with patients without PA, patients with PA had mean values of urinary calcium excretion, 4.8 ± 2.5 mmol/day vs 7.6 ± 3.2 mmol/day, P < 0.001 and serum PTH levels, 5.4 pmol/L vs 7.3 pmol/L, P < 0.01, significantly higher. CONCLUSIONS: PA should be considered among the causes of secondary OP.

Bone involvement in aldosteronism.

In rats with aldosteronism, a reduction of bone mineral density (BMD) and cortical bone strength has been reported. Our study was aimed to evaluate bone involvement in patients with primary aldosteronism (PA). A total of 188 consecutive subjects with adrenal incidentaloma, observed between November 2009 and October 2011, were screened for PA with aldosterone-to-renin ratio. After confirmatory tests, in those who screened positive, 11 patients were diagnosed as PA and 15 patients were not (nPA). A serum/urinary biochemical profile, parathyroid hormone (PTH), BMD measured at lumbar spine (LS) and total and femoral neck (TN and FN) by dual X-ray absorptiometry, and conventional spinal radiographs (T(4) -L(4) ) were obtained in all subjects. PA patients had a significantly higher 24-hour urinary calcium (6.28 ± 1.85 versus 4.28 ± 1.18 mmol/d; p < 0.01), and PTH (9.8 [5.8-14.6], median [range] versus 5.3 [2.5-10.8] pmol/L; p < 0.01) than nPA patients. BMD expressed as Z-value at LS (-1.18 ± 0.99 versus 0.22 ± 1.12), FN (-0.85 ± 0.73 versus 0.01 ± 0.82), and TN (-0.49 ± 0.61 versus 0.39 ± 0.93) was lower in PA than in nPA (p = 0.003, p = 0.011, and p = 0.012, respectively). The prevalence of osteoporosis was higher in PA than in nPA (8/11, 72.7% versus 3/15, 20.0%; Fisher's exact test: p = 0.015). Vertebral fractures tended to be more prevalent in PA than in nPA (5/11, 45.5% versus 2/15, 13.3%; Fisher's exact test: p = 0.095). Logistic regression analysis showed that osteoporosis and morphometric vertebral fractures were associated with PA (odds ratio [OR], 15.4; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.83-130, p = 0.012; and OR, 30.4; 95%CI, 1.07-862, p = 0.045, respectively) regardless of age, body mass index (BMI), and LS-BMD. In 9 of 11 PA patients, 6 months after beginning of treatment (surgery or spironolactone) there was a significant reduction of urinary calcium excretion (p < 0.01) and PTH (p < 0.01), whereas in 5 of 11 PA patients, 1 year after beginning of treatment, BMD was significantly increased at LS, p < 0.01). In conclusion, PA is associated with osteoporosis, vertebral fractures, and increased urinary calcium excretion.