Divergence Between Clinical Trial Evidence and Actual Practice in Use of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy After Transient Ischemic Attack and Minor Stroke.

BACKGROUND: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) proved that short-term (21-90 days) dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) reduces the risk of early ischemic recurrences after a noncardioembolic minor stroke or high-risk transient ischemic attack (TIA) without substantially increasing the hemorrhagic risk. We aimed at understanding whether and how real-world use of DAPT differs from RCTs. METHODS: READAPT (Real-Life Study on Short-Term Dual Antiplatelet Treatment in Patients With Ischemic Stroke or TIA) is a prospective cohort study including >18-year-old patients treated with DAPT after a noncardioembolic minor ischemic stroke or high-risk TIA from 51 Italian centers. The study comprises a 90-day follow-up from symptom onset. In the present work, we reported descriptive statistics of baseline data of patients recruited up to July 31, 2022, and proportions of patients who would have been excluded from RCTs. We compared categorical data through the χ² test. RESULTS: We evaluated 1070 patients, who had 72 (interquartile range, 62-79) years median age, were mostly Caucasian (1045; 97.7%), and were men (711; 66.4%). Among the 726 (67.9%) patients with ischemic stroke, 226 (31.1%) did not meet the RCT inclusion criteria because of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score >3 and 50 (6.9%) because of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score >5. Among the 344 (32.1%) patients with TIA, 69 (19.7%) did not meet the RCT criteria because of age, blood pressure, clinical features, duration of TIA, presence of diabetes score <4 and 252 (74.7%) because of age, blood pressure, clinical features, duration of TIA, presence of diabetes score <6 and no symptomatic arterial stenosis. Additionally, 144 (13.5%) patients would have been excluded because of revascularization procedures. Three hundred forty-five patients (32.2%) did not follow the RCT procedures because of late (>24 hours) DAPT initiation; 776 (72.5%) and 676 (63.2%) patients did not take loading doses of aspirin and clopidogrel, respectively. Overall, 84 (7.8%) patients met the RCT inclusion/exclusion criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The real-world use of DAPT is broader than RCTs. Most patients did not meet the RCT criteria because of the severity of ischemic stroke, lower risk of TIA, late DAPT start, or lack of antiplatelet loading dose. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov; Unique identifier: NCT05476081.

The Relationship between Post-COVID Syndrome and the Burden of Comorbidities Assessed Using the Charlson Comorbidity Index.

Introduction: The post-COVID-19 syndrome is a clinical entity characterized by the manifestation of signs and symptoms that develop after the acute phase of COVID-19, which persist for a duration of more than 12 weeks and are not explained by any alternative diagnosis. It has been observed that individuals with pre-existing chronic diseases, including cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, are at a greater risk of developing post-COVID-19 syndrome. The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) is a useful tool employed to evaluate the burden of comorbidities and predict the prognosis of patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome. The present study aims to assess whether the burden of comorbidities, evaluated using the CCI, correlates with post-COVID-19 syndrome. Materials and Methods: Between 21 April 2020 and 15 May 2023, we enrolled all consecutive outpatients with previous COVID-19 admissions to a post-acute day-hospital service three months after a negative SARS-CoV-2 molecular test. We assessed age, sex, BMI, acute COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 signs, and symptoms and calculated CCI according to its current definition. Post-COVID-19 syndrome was defined as the persistence of at least one sign or symptom lasting more than 12 weeks after COVID-19 resolution and not explained by an alternative diagnosis. The relationship between post-COVID-19 and CCI was explored first with the chi-squared test, then with different binary logistic regression models. We considered significant values of p lower than 0.05. Results: We obtained a cohort of 3636 patients and observed a significant association between the number of post-COVID-19 symptoms and CCI. Patients developing post-COVID-19 were more commonly affected by a greater burden of comorbidities. Patients with at least one CCI point had an increased risk of post-COVID-19 syndrome (OR:2.961; 95%CI: 2.269-3.863; p < 0.0001), which increased further for CCI ≥ 4 (OR:6.062; 95%CI: 3.163-11.618; p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Patients affected by post-COVID-19 show a greater clinical complexity and a larger burden of comorbidities, synthesized by a higher CCI; moreover, a higher CCI seems to correlate with an increasing post-COVID-19 risk, being the presence of ≥1 or ≥4 CCI points associated with a 3-fold and 6-fold increased risk of post-COVID-19 syndrome, respectively.

Ditans: a new prospective for the therapy of migraine attack?

INTRODUCTION: Migraine attack is characterized by disabling pain and associated symptoms. Triptans represent the "gold standard" therapy, but cardiac subjects have significant limitations for this approach. New drug families are under consideration to expand therapeutic offerings, especially in the presence of contraindications or for non-responsive patients. This review aimed to analyze studies related to the category of "ditans," with a focus on lasmiditan, which is available for human use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We consulted PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, and www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov to find both original and review articles on the mechanism of action of 5-HT1F agonists in migraine, and for randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials (RCTs) on the family of drugs called "ditans," with a focus on "lasmiditan," published in the time frame of 01-Jan-2010 to 31-Mar-2022. Only studies conducted in human subjects and published in English were included in this review. RESULTS: We retrieved four RCTs (named SAMURAI, SPARTAN, GLADIATOR, and CENTURION) and several studies that analyzed the efficacy and safety of lasmiditan. Lasmiditan at increasing doses showed significant improvement in pain and most other troublesome symptoms at 2 h. Adverse events were mild and mainly represented by dizziness, vertigo, drowsiness, and fatigue. No vasoconstrictive effects were described, suggesting the use of ditans as a safe option in chronic cardio- and cerebro-vascular disease. DISCUSSION: Lasmiditan could be a viable alternative to triptans, although further RCT studies and real-world evidence are needed to better understand its potential and possible adverse events in a larger population.

Efficacy and safety of reperfusion treatments in middle-old and oldest-old stroke patients.

INTRODUCTION: Intravenous thrombolysis (IT) and mechanical thrombectomy (MT) have significantly changed the clinical outcome of acute ischaemic stroke (AIS). Concerns about possible complications often reduce the use of these treatment options for older patients, preferentially managed with antiplatelet therapy (AT). Aim of this study was to evaluate, in a population of middle-old (75-84 years) and oldest-old (≥ 85 years) subjects, the efficacy and safety of different treatments for AIS (IT, IT + MT, MT or AT), mortality and incidence of serious complications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All patients aged over 75 years admitted for AIS in two Stroke Units were enrolled. The physician in each case considered all treatment options and chose the best approach. NIHSS and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) were obtained and differences between admission and discharge scores, defined as delta(NIHSS) and delta(mRS), were calculated. The relationship between delta(NIHSS), delta(mRS) and type of procedure was analysed with a GLM/Multivariate model. Differences in mortality and incidence of serious complications were analysed with the chi-square test. RESULTS: A total of 273 patients, mean age 84.07 (± 5.47) years, were included. The Delta(NIHSS) was significantly lower in patients treated with AT than in those treated with IT and MT (p < 0.009 and p < 0.005, respectively). Haemorrhagic infarction occurrence was significantly lower (p < 0.0001) among patients treated with AT (10.6%) or IT (16.7%) compared to MT (34.9%) or MT + IT (37.0%). No significant difference was observed for in-hospital mortality. Age did not influence the outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that IT and AT are effective and relatively safe approaches in middle-aged and older patients.

Gender differences in obsessive-compulsive disorder traits among chronic migraine patients.

BACKGROUND: Psychiatric illnesses are often associated with severe forms of headache as chronic migraine (CM) with medication overuse headaches (MOH). Few data are available about obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) in migraineurs. This study aimed to investigate OCD traits in CM with MOH patients of both sexes and the impact on migraine treatment. METHODS: We enrolled all consecutive patients with CM and MOH treated with onabotulinumtoxin-A (OBT-A) in our Headache Center. Each subject was submitted to the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) test at the start (T0) and after four OBT-A sessions (T1). Statistical analysis compared OCI-R results at T0 and T1 according to sex with the chi-square test. RESULTS: We analyzed a sample of 60 subjects (40 females, 66.7%). At T0, 25% of males and 37.5% of females had a normal profile while 60% of males and 22.5% of females presented pathologic OCD traits. At T1, 30% of males and 60% of females were normal, while 40% of males and 15% of females resulted frankly pathologic. The difference in the OCI-R distribution was significant at T0 (p = 0.024) and at T1 (p = 0.047). Both males and females underwent a significant increase in normalization rates at T1 (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: We observed a significant OCD traits rate at baseline, moreover among men. Females showed a more significant improvement in OCD traits at T1. OBT-A confirmed its high efficacy on CM, with a migraine severity improvement in both genders and all the OCI-R classes. Psychological attitude in the management of migraine should be better investigated in future studies.

Inflammation markers in moderate and severe obstructive sleep apnea: the influence of sex.

PURPOSE: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most prevalent sleep-related breathing disorder, with a negative impact on cardiovascular health. Different OSA symptoms and treatment response in males and females have been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate inflammatory markers in patients with OSA and the relationship of those markers to disease severity in male and female subjects. METHODS: We considered consecutive subjects referred to the outpatient Sleep Disorder Service of the Respiratory Medicine Department, San Marino Hospital. We included patients with a diagnosis of moderate or severe OSAS and an age range of 45-80 years. Concomitant inflammatory conditions were an exclusion criterion. A polygraphic study and a blood draw for inflammatory markers were performed for each subject. RESULTS: Of 110 subjects, 59 were males. Severe OSA affected 72 subjects. We analyzed data through a 4-level categorical variable according to sex and OSA severity (moderate OSA, males; severe OSA, males; moderate OSA, females; severe OSA, females), which showed significant differences for interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. A significant difference in IL-6 levels with a significant ascending trend (p = 0.045) from females with moderate OSAS to males with severe OSAS emerged in our pairwise comparison for estimated marginal means. Also, a significant trend (p = 0.0001) for CRP levels from males with moderate OSAS to females with severe OSAS was shown. CONCLUSIONS: OSA and inflammation are interconnected, and both are associated with vascular diseases. Sex-related differences in OSA phenotypes may help the clinicians aim for a more personalized approach.

Clusters of Comorbidities in the Short-Term Prognosis of Acute Heart Failure among Elderly Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background and Objectives: Elderly patients affected by acute heart failure (AHF) often show different patterns of comorbidities. In this paper, we aimed to evaluate how chronic comorbidities cluster and which pattern of comorbidities is more strongly related to in-hospital death in AHF. Materials and Methods: All patients admitted for AHF to an Internal Medicine Department (01/2015−01/2019) were retrospectively evaluated; the main outcome of this study was in-hospital death during an admission for AHF; age, sex, the Charlson comorbidity index (CCI), and 17 different chronic pathologies were investigated; the association between the comorbidities was studied with Pearson's bivariate test, considering a level of p ≤ 0.10 significant, and considering p < 0.05 strongly significant. Thus, we identified the clusters of comorbidities associated with the main outcome and tested the CCI and each cluster against in-hospital death with logistic regression analysis, assessing the accuracy of the prediction with ROC curve analysis. Results: A total of 459 consecutive patients (age: 83.9 ± 8.02 years; males: 56.6%). A total of 55 (12%) subjects reached the main outcome; the CCI and 16 clusters of comorbidities emerged as being associated with in-hospital death from AHF. Of these, CCI and six clusters showed an accurate prediction of in-hospital death. Conclusions: Both the CCI and specific clusters of comorbidities are associated with in-hospital death from AHF among elderly patients. Specific phenotypes show a greater association with a worse short-term prognosis than a more generic scale, such as the CCI.

Erenumab does not alter cerebral hemodynamics and endothelial function in migraine without aura.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether erenumab influences cerebral vasomotor reactivity and flow-mediated dilation in migraine patients. METHODS: Consecutive migraineurs prescribed erenumab at our Headache Centre and age and sex-matching controls were invited to participate in this observational longitudinal study. Patients were evaluated for cerebral vasomotor reactivity to hypercapnia (breath-holding index) in middle and posterior cerebral arteries and for brachial corrected flow mediated dilation at baseline (T0), after 2 weeks from the first erenumab injection (T2) and after 2 weeks from the fourth Erenumab injection (T18). Patients displaying a reduction of at least 50% in monthly migraine days after completing the fourth month of therapy were classified as responders. RESULTS: Sixty patients and 25 controls agreed to participate. Middle and posterior cerebral artery mean flow velocities, breath-holding index and flow-mediated dilation did not differ at T0 and from T0 to T2 in patients and controls. In patients, we neither observed a variation of the explored variables from T0 to T18 nor an interaction between evaluation times (T0-T2 or T0-T18) and chronic condition at T0, responder state or erenumab fourth dose. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that erenumab preserves cerebral vasomotor reactivity and flow-mediated dilation in migraineurs without aura.

Carotid occlusion: Impact of cerebral hemodynamic impairment on cognitive performances.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the presence of carotid artery occlusion (CO) may be associated with different cognitive performances in relation to the side of the occlusion and its hemodynamic consequences. METHODS: During a 12-month period, 61 asymptomatic patients, 32 with right and 29 with left CO, were enrolled. Each patient underwent an assessment of cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) to hypercapnia with transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasonography using the breath-holding index (BHI). Neuropsychological assessment evaluating performances of the hemisphere ipsilateral to CO were administered at entry (T0 ) and then repeated after 2 years (T1 ). RESULTS: Scores obtained at colored progressive matrices (CPM) and Rey Complex Figure Copy Test were significantly lower at T0 in patients with reduced BHI values ipsilateral to CO. Multivariate models showed that reduced BHI values were also associated to a significant decrease from T0 to T1 in scores obtained for CPM and Categorical Verbal Fluency tests, respectively, in patients with right (P = 0.002) or left CO (P = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that hemodynamic alterations could be involved in the reduction in cognitive function regulated by the hemisphere ipsilateral to CO. The assessment of CVR with TCD ultrasonography may be a reliable approach for the individuation of asymptomatic patients with CO at increased risk of cognitive deterioration.

Sleep actigraphic patterns and cognitive status.

We performed an actigraphic assessment of sleep characteristics in healthy subjects and patients with cognitive impairment. Thirty subjects were included and classified into controls (10 subjects), mild cognitive impairment (10 patients) and mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease (10 patients). Sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Participants had a 7-day actigraphic record. Sleep parameters collected were time in bed, total sleep time, sleep efficiency, sleep latency, wakefulness after sleep onset, number of awakenings, and mean motor activity. Significant differences between mild cognitive impairment and controls patients were found for sleep latency (p = 0.05); Alzheimer's disease patients had significantly worse scores for Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (p = 0.01), time in bed (p = 0.001), total sleep time (p = 0.04), sleep latency, sleep efficiency, motor activity (p = 0.0001) and wakefulness after sleep onset (p = 0.001) compared to controls. When comparing Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment, differences were significant for sleep latency (p = 0.01), wakefulness after sleep onset (p = 0.004), sleep efficiency, number of awakenings and motor activity (p = 0.0001). In addition to showing a high prevalence of sleep alterations in subjects with cognitive impairment, our data suggest that they are evident from the earliest stages of cognitive decline. Further studies are needed to assess whether early correction of sleep alterations can positively influence the evolution of cognitive impairment. The opportunity to provide clinically meaningful information with a simple assessment of sleep characteristics based on actigraphy suggests that wider use of the approach in patients with cognitive decline should be considered.

Chronic Respiratory Diseases and Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Primer for the Practicing Clinician.

Chronic respiratory disorders represent a world epidemic. Their incidence and prevalence in the world population is increasing, and especially among elderly subjects, they are commonly associated with other pathologies, often generating a status of high clinical complexity. Neurology, internal medicine, and pneumology specialists should be aware of the common background of these disorders in order to treat correctly the patient's comorbid state and optimize the treatment considering potential overlaps. In this review, we aimed to focus on the relationships between chronic respiratory disorders and chronic neurodegenerative diseases at different levels; we review the shared risk factors and the interactions between disorders, the indications to explore respiratory function in neurodegenerative diseases, pathology-pathology and drug-pathology interactions in patients affected by both chronic neurologic and respiratory diseases.

Clinical Method Applied to Focused Ultrasound: The Case of Wells' Score and Echocardiography in the Emergency Department: A Systematic Review and a Meta-Analysis.

Background and Objectives: bedside cardiac ultrasound is a widely adopted method in Emergency Departments (ED) for extending physical examination and refining clinical diagnosis. However, in the setting of hemodynamically-stable pulmonary embolism, the diagnostic role of echocardiography is still the subject of debate. In light of its high specificity and low sensitivity, some authors suggest that echocardiographic signs of right ventricle overload could be used to rule-in pulmonary embolism. In this study, we aimed to clarify the diagnostic role of echocardiographic signs of right ventricle overload in the setting of hemodynamically-stable pulmonary embolism in the ED. Materials and Methods: we performed a systematic review of literature in PubMed, Web of Science and Cochrane databases, considering the echocardiographic signs for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in the ED. Studies considering unstable or shocked patients were excluded. Papers enrolling hemodynamically stable subjects were selected. We performed a diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis for each sign, and then performed a critical evaluation according to pretest probability, assessed with Wells' score for pulmonary embolism. Results: 10 studies were finally included. We observed a good specificity and a low sensitivity of each echocardiographic sign of right ventricle overload. However, once stratified by the Wells' score, the post-test probability only increased among high-risk patients. Conclusions: signs of echocardiographic right ventricle overload should not be used to modify the clinical behavior in low- and intermediate- risk patients according to Wells' score classification. Among high-risk patients, however, echocardiographic signs could help a physician in detecting patients with the highest probability of pulmonary embolism, necessitating a confirmation by computed tomography with pulmonary angiography. However, a focused cardiac and thoracic ultrasound investigation is useful for the differential diagnosis of dyspnea and chest pain in the ED.

Impact of atrial fibrillation in critically ill patients admitted to a stepdown unit.

BACKGROUND: Limited data are available on the clinical course of patients with history of atrial fibrillation (AF) when admitted in an intensive care environment. We aimed to describe the occurrence of major adverse events in AF patients admitted to a stepdown care unit (SDU) and to analyse clinical factors associated with outcomes, impact of dicumarolic oral anticoagulant (OAC) therapy impact and performance of clinical risk scores in this setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Single-centre, observational retrospective analysis on a population of subjects with AF history admitted to a SDU. Therapeutic failure (composite of transfer to ICU or death) was considered the main study outcome. Occurrence of stroke and major bleeding (MH) was considered as secondary outcomes. The performance of clinical risk scores was evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 1430 consecutive patients were enrolled. 194 (13.6%) reported the main outcome. Using multivariate logistic regression, age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.03, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01-1.05), acute coronary syndrome (OR:3.10, 95% CI: 1.88-5.12), cardiogenic shock (OR:10.06, 95% CI: 5.37-18.84), septic shock (OR:5.19,95%CI:3.29-18.84), acute respiratory failure (OR:2.49, 95% CI: 1.67-3.64) and OAC use (OR: 1.61, 95% CI: 1.02-2.55) were independently associated with main outcome. OAC prescription was associated with stroke risk reduction and to both MH and main outcome risk increase. CHA2 DS2 -VASc (c-index: 0.545, P = .117 for stroke) and HAS-BLED (c-index:0.503, P = .900 for MH) did not significantly predict events occurrence. CONCLUSIONS: In critically ill AF patients admitted to a SDU, adverse outcomes are highly prevalent. OAC use is associated to an increased risk of therapeutic failure, clinical scores seem unhelpful in predicting stroke and MH, suggesting a highly individualized approach in AF management in this setting.

SOFA and qSOFA usefulness for in-hospital death prediction of elderly patients admitted for suspected infection in internal medicine.

PURPOSE: To reduce intensive care unit overcrowding and optimize resources, elderly patients affected by suspected infection with declining clinical conditions could be managed in internal medicine departments with stepdown beds. However, commonly used prognostic scores, as Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) or quick SOFA (qSOFA) have never been studied in this specific setting. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role and the accuracy of SOFA and qSOFA as prognostic scores in a population of elderly patients with suspected infection admitted to stepdown beds of two internal medicine departments. METHODS: Elderly patients admitted from the emergency department in the stepdown beds of two different internal medicine departments for suspected infection were assessed with SOFA and qSOFA scores at the admission. All patients were treated according to current guidelines. Age, sex, comorbidities, Charlson comorbidity index, SOFA and qSOFA were assessed. In-hospital death and length of hospital admission were also recorded. RESULTS: 390 subjects were enrolled. In-hospital death occurred in 144 (36.9%) patients; we observed that both SOFA (HR 1.189; 95% CI 1.128-1.253; p < 0.0001) and qSOFA (HR 1.803; 95% CI 1.503-2.164; p < 0.0001) scores were independently associated with an increased risk of in-hospital death. However, the accuracy of both SOFA (AUC: 0.686; 95% CI 0.637-0.732; p < 0.0001) and qSOFA (AUC: 0.680; 95% CI 0.641-0.735; p < 0.0001) in predicting in-hospital death was low in this population. CONCLUSION: Elderly patients admitted to stepdown beds for suspected infection experience a high rate of in-hospital death; both SOFA and qSOFA scores can be useful to identify a group of patients who can benefit from admission to an intermediate care environment, however their accuracy is low.

Influence of chronotype on migraine characteristics.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate chronotype in migraine patients and possible influences on the clinical expression of the disease. METHODS: During a one-year period, all consecutive patients admitted to two third-level headache centres with a new diagnosis of migraine were enrolled in a cross-sectional study. All subjects were submitted to the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ-SA) and then classified in five different categories, from late to early-rising chronotype. Differences and trends among MEQ-SA categories and years from migraine onset, attacks' intensity and frequency were analysed first with analysis of variance, then with a multivariate/generalized linear model. RESULTS: One hundred seventy one migraine patients were included. Early-rising patients showed a lower migraine attacks frequency and longer disease duration with respect to late-rising patients. The categorical variable containing the five circadian types was able to identify a significantly different trend both for the monthly attacks frequency and for the disease duration (p < 0.0001 and p < 0.0001, respectively, analysis of variance). The results were also confirmed after correction for main influencing variables (multivariate/generalized linear model). The intensity of migraine attacks was not influenced by chronotype. CONCLUSIONS: According to the results of the present study, chronotype seems to influence number and duration of migraine attacks. Although sleep-wake cycle is a well-recognized factor able to influence thalamic-cortical synchronization, it usually does not receive appropriate consideration during migraine patients' assessment.

Does the Magnitude of the Electrocardiogram QT Interval Dispersion Predict Stroke Outcome?

BACKGROUND: QT dispersion, maximal interlead difference in QT interval on 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG), measures cardiac repolarization abnormalities. Data are conflicting whether QT dispersion predicts adverse outcome in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients. Our objective is to determine if QT dispersion predicts: (1) short-term clinical outcome in AIS, and (2) stroke location (insular versus noninsular cortex). METHODS: Admission ECGs from 412 consecutive patients with acute stroke symptoms from 2 university-based stroke centers were reviewed. QT dispersion was measured. A neuroradiologist reviewed brain imaging for insular cortex involvement. Favorable clinical outcomes at discharge were modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 0-1, discharge National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score less than 2, and discharge to home. Multiple logistic regressions were performed for each outcome measure and to determine the association between insular infarct and QT dispersion. RESULTS: Of 145 subjects in the final analysis, median age was 65 years (interquartile range [IQR] 56-75), male patients were 38%, black patients were 68%, median QT dispersion was 78 milliseconds (IQR 59-98), and median admission NIHSS score was 4 (IQR 2-6). QT dispersion did not predict short-term clinical outcome for mRS score (odds ratio [OR] = 1.001, 95% confidence interval [CI] .99-1.01, P = .85), NIHSS at discharge (OR = .994, 95% CI .98-1.01, P = .30), or discharge disposition (OR = 1.001, 95% CI .99-1.01, P = .81). Insular cortex involvement did not correlate with QT dispersion magnitude (OR = 1.009, 95% CI .99-1.02, P = .45). CONCLUSIONS: We could not demonstrate that QT dispersion is useful in predicting short-term clinical outcome at discharge in AIS. Further, the magnitude of QT dispersion did not predict insular cortical stroke location.

Impact of sleep disorders on the risk of seizure recurrence in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of sleep disturbances in patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME) using sleep questionnaires. Further, we tried to evaluate whether alterations in sleep quality may influence the clinical expression of JME. METHODS: Sixty-two patients with JME treated with levetiracetam were included. Demographic and clinical variables were collected. Moreover, all patients submitted the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality index (PSQI) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) in order to respectively assess sleep quality during the last month and daytime sleepiness. All patients were followed up for a 6-month period and divided in two groups: seizure-free (Group 1) and seizure recurrence (Group 2). The PSQI and ESS scores were synthesized as binary variables <5/≥5 and <10/≥10, respectively. A comprehensive analysis was performed to evaluate the independent effect of the sleep quality and daytime sleepiness on the risk of having seizures during the follow-up. RESULTS: Both reduced sleep quality during the last month and daytime sleepiness were associated with an increased risk of suffering from seizures during the follow-up period. In fact, a PSQI score<5 or an ESS score<10 resulted significantly associated with the absence of seizure recurrence (p<0.004 and p<0.001, respectively). Increasing age had a significantly protective effect in the risk of seizure relapse. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that reduced sleep quality and daytime sleepiness in patients with JME increase the risk of seizure occurrence in spite of an appropriate pharmacological treatment. This negative effect seems to be more relevant in younger patients. Sleep disorders and their specific correction should be taken into consideration for the management of patients with JME.

Validation of a self-reported instrument to assess work-related difficulties in patients with migraine: the HEADWORK questionnaire.

BACKGROUND: The degree to which work-related difficulties are recognized in headache research is poor and often carried out with inadequate information such as "reduced ability to work as usual", which do not capture at all the variety of difficulties and the factors that impact over them. The aim of this paper is to present the validation of the HEADWORK questionnaire, which addresses the amount and severity of difficulties in work-related tasks and the factors that impact over them. METHODS: We developed a set of items based on a previous literature review and patients' focus groups and tested it on a wide set of patients with episodic and chronic migraine attending eight different Italian headache centers. HEADWORK factor structure was assessed with exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis; internal consistency and construct validity were addressed as well. RESULTS: The validation sample (N = 373) was mostly composed of patients with episodic migraine without aura (64.3%) and of females (81%). Factor analysis retrieved two different scales: "Work-related difficulties", composed of eleven items which explain 67.1% of the total variance, and "Factors contributing to work difficulties", composed of six items which explain 52.1% of the total variance. Both HEADWORK subscales have good measurement properties, with higher scores being associated to higher disability, lower quality of life, lower productivity, higher headache frequency and pain intensity. CONCLUSIONS: HEADWORK is a 17-item, two-scale questionnaire addressing the impact of migraine on work-related difficulties in terms of difficulties in general or specific skills, and the factors contributing to these difficulties, defined as negative impact on work tasks. It can be used to address disability weights for the purpose of calculating the burden of migraine, and to assess the balance between therapeutic and side effects of medication on productivity.

From head to toe: Sex and gender differences in the treatment of ischemic cerebral disease.

Stroke is a major cause of mortality and morbidity, particularly in the older ages. Women have a longer life expectancy and are more likely to experience stroke than men. Interestingly, the increased risk of ischemic stroke in women seems to be independent from age or classical cardiovascular risk factors. Notwithstanding the fact that stroke outcomes and survival are usually poorer in women, current evidence suggests that thrombolysis, antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapies are more beneficial in women than in men. A possible explanation of this paradox might be that females are often undertreated and they have fewer chances to be submitted to an effective and timely treatment for stroke than the male counterpart. The first step in the attempt to solve this obvious discrimination is surely to emphasize any reasons for differences in the therapeutic approach in relation to gender and then to denounce the lack of a sustainable motivation for them. In this article, we aimed to review the existing literature about gender-related differences on efficacy, administration and side effects of the most common drugs used for the treatment of ischemic stroke. The most striking result was the evidence that the therapeutic approach for stroke is often different according to patients' gender with a clear detrimental prognostic effect for women. A major effort is necessary to overcome this problem in order to ensure equal right to treatment without any sexual discrimination.

Raven coloured progressive matrices in migraine without aura patients.

Conflicting results emerged from studies investigating cognitive performances in migraine patients. Based on clinical and neuroradiological aspects, the possible involvement of executive functions has been especially taken into consideration. The aim of this study was to evaluate, in a population of subjects affected by migraine without aura (MwoA), frontal lobe cognitive functions. We enrolled all the consecutive patients affected by MwoA referred to our headache centre for a first evaluation. Each patient underwent a neuropsychological evaluation including Raven coloured progressive matrices (CPM). We collected variables as age, education, years of migraine, frequency of attacks and CPM scores. Relationship between continuous variables was explored with multiple regression lines, selecting the best-fitting trendline for each relationship. We obtained a final sample of 36 subjects (females: 62.5%; mean age: 42.25 ± 10.21 years). Patients had mean length of migraine history of 12.25 ± 11.00 years and a mean frequency of attacks of 8.06 ± 7.15 per month. Linear regression underlines a progressive decrease of CPM score with the increase of the migraine history's length (R 2 = 0.8871; p < 0.001), and the frequency of migraine attacks (R 2 = 0.3122; p < 0.05). Our findings suggest that pathological CPM scores can be associated with the severity of migraine. These data seem to confirm the hypothesis of an impairment of executive functions in MwoA. Different hypotheses to explain cognitive impairment in migraine have been postulated including the impact of the typical white matter lesions and a long history of drug abuse. The possible relevant clinical consequence of a full comprehension of this particular aspect related to migraine deserves further attention and consideration.