[Personality traits as risk factors for the development of cognitive impairment and affective symptoms in patients with COVID-19]. / Osobennosti lichnosti kak faktory riska razvitiya kognitivnykh narushenii i affektivnoi simptomatiki u perenesshikh COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: To identify possible associations between premorbid personality traits and cognitive impairment and affective symptoms in patients who have recovered from COVID-19. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 30 people with the so-called post-COVID syndrome. The diagnosis of COVID-19 was previously confirmed by laboratory tests in each patient. The control group included 15 healthy individuals. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to assess depression and anxiety. Cognitive function was assessed using the Verbal Fluency Test (VF), the Montreal Cognitive Scale (MOCA), and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). The Munich Personality Test (MRT) and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-26) were used to assess premorbid personality characteristics. Multiple stepwise regression analysis was used as the main statistical method to identify the relationship between premorbid personality constructs and cognitive test results and affective and anxiety symptoms. RESULTS: The presence of frustration tolerance in the personality structure reduced the number of incorrect answers (beta coefficient -0.811) in WCST and decreased the delay in responses with positive reinforcement (-0.630), and also reduced the level of depression (-0.465). Extraversion decreased the MOCA test score (-0.675) and increased the percentage of perseverative incorrect answers on the WCST test (0.573). The constructs of adherence to social norms and propensity to isolate lowered the final MOCA score (beta coefficients are -0.725 and -0.527, respectively). The esoteric tendencies construct decreased the latency of positive and negative reinforcement responses in WCST (-0.441 and -0.528, respectively). The severity of alexithymia was positively correlated with depression (beta 0.577), while neuroticism was positively correlated with anxiety (0.737). CONCLUSION: Low levels of frustration tolerance and esoteric tendencies have negative effects on cognition in COVID-19 survivors, while high levels of these constructs are protective against cognitive decline and depression.

[Post COVID-19 disorders: is the epidemic of parkinsonism threatening the world?] / Postkovidnye narusheniya: grozit li miru epidemiya parkinsonizma?

During the pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, the ability of this virus to infect the structures of the peripheral and central nervous system becomes increasingly clear. Damage to the nervous system is noted in almost 85% of patients who have had COVID-19, both those who have had this disease in severe form, and in patients with mild or asymptomatic course. COVID-19 worsens symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), which potentially increases the risk of death due to pneumonia and respiratory disorders in patients with severe stages of PD. There is a concern that the COVID-19 pandemic may lead to a sharp increase in the incidence of parkinsonism, while the ability of the SARS-CoV-2 virus to cause PD is assumed. The following ways of virus penetration, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus, into the structures of the central nervous system are considered - viremia and endothelial cell damage, as well as retrograde axonal transport. The direct penetration of the COVID-19 virus into the structures of the brain may be due to a disturbance of the blood-brain barrier due to a «cytokine storm¼ and activation of lymphocytes, which is due to the processes of neuroinflammation. According to some of its manifestations, the extrapyramidal syndrome observed in patients with COVID-19 resembles lethargic encephalitis von Economo. However, the question of the possibility of COVID-19 causing the development of PD is extremely complex and ambiguous. The latency period between viral encephalitis and the onset of parkinsonism can reach 5 years. It is possible that the basis for the development of neurological disorders, including parkinsonism, in this category of patients is an energy deficit that leads to disruption of the functioning of neural networks (human connectome) of the human brain. Based on the currently very limited data concerning the penetration of the COVID-19 virus into the structures of the central nervous system, there is no convincing evidence of this virus causing parkinsonism. The final clarity on this issue will be provided by the results of observations on the condition of patients who have undergone COVID-19.

[Tinnitus: clinical and pathogenetic aspects]. / Tinnitus: kliniko-patogeneticheskie aspekty.

The article discusses the pathogenetic and clinical features of tinnitus. It is emphasized that various causes contribute to the appearance of tinnitus, including somatic diseases, excess body weight, iatrogenies, otological diseases with an outcome in hearing loss. The anatomical and physiological features of the structure of the central part of the auditory system are considered. It is suggested that the occurrence of tinnitus is associated with the processes of maladaptive neuroplasticity caused by pathological changes in the neuronal activity of cortical structures of the CNS, and not with changes in the peripheral part of the auditory analyzer - the structures of the cochlea. The results of recent studies, including those using functional neuroimaging methods, indicate the significance of cortical connection disorders (human connectome) in patients with tinnitus. In patients with tinnitus, there are changes in regional neuronal activity and connections not only in the auditory cortex, but also in areas not directly related to the analysis of auditory afferentation. Thus, tinnitus can be considered as one of the variants of dysfunction of the human connectome, triggered primarily from the «auditory input¼.

[Ethics and medicine]. / Etika i meditsina.

The article deals with the problem of ethical constituent both in medical and teaching practice. As to the medical practice, its ethical component is treated as an obligatory one, no matter what physician specialty is. That is why, the importance of ethical aspects in medicine increases greatly now. Neurology is one of the quickly developing disciplines, new data being obtained on etiology, pathogenesis, diagnostics and treatment of diseases previously considered incurable. Clinical tests of new drugs demand patients Informed Consent, this being one of the important ethical aspects of medical practice. The importance of the problem is illustrated by the examples of ethically unacceptable experiments on human beings in the United States after the Second World War and The Nuremberg Tribunal. Ethical issues that arise in the teaching process are considered. Ethical problems arising from the use of electronic technique of medical information storage are also analyzed. As to the teaching practice in higher medical institutions, its main ethical constituent concerns moral aspects of medical students training.

[Stroke and depression]. / Insul't i depressiia.

Depression is a frequent complication of stroke and occurs in approximately one in three surviving patients. Depression worsens the course of post-stroke neurological disorders, enhances the physical helplessness of patients, further reduces their quality of life, significantly decreases the effectiveness of therapeutic and rehabilitation measures and increases the risk of death. Antidepressants eliminate or relieve depressive symptoms, mitigate neurological disorders, improve cognitive functions and the general condition of patients, increase the effectiveness of treatment and rehabilitation, diminish the risk of recurrent stroke and decrease mortality. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are the first line antidepressants for post-stroke patients; there is evidence of the effectiveness of other modern antidepressants, as well as tricyclic drugs. Unresolved aspects of this problem that require further well-designed controlled studies include tolerability of antidepressants by patients of late age, the choice of optimal drugs and the duration of therapy.

[Transcranial magnetic stimulation in the diagnostic and treatment of pain syndromes in children and adults]. / Transkranial'naia magnitnaia stimuliatsiia v diagnostike i terapii bolevykh sindromov u detei i vzroslykh.

The authors review the literature and own data concerning therapeutic use of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in children and adult patients with pain syndromes of different origins. TMS may act as a tool to excite or inhibit neuroplasticity in the central nervous system, which depends of the therapeutic regime used. TMS induces neurogenesis and synaptogenesis, rhythmic TMS may cause long-lasting after-effects, including pain inhibitory effect. A decrease in the threshold and an increase in the amplitude of motor evoked potentials in TMS are the most frequent changes in pain syndromes in the diagnostic modality. The efficacy of different regimes in the treatment of pain syndromes remains understudied. Despite vast knowledge on clinical use of TMS in pain syndromes in adults, in pediatrics its use is limited to migraine treatment. TMS is a valuable diagnostic and therapeutic tool that should be more often implemented in neurorehabilitation and treatment of neurological diseases in adults and children with pain syndromes.

Neurological disorders in vitamin B12 deficiency.

The review discusses thesteps of vitamin B12 metabolism and its role in maintaining of neurological functions. The term "vitamin B12 (cobalamin)" refers to several substances (cobalamins) of a very similar structure. Cobalamin enters the body with animal products. On the peripherу cobalamin circulates only in binding with proteins transcobalamin I and II (complex cobalamin-transcobalamin II is designated as "holotranscobalamin"). Holotranscobalamin is absorbed by different cells, whereas transcobalamin I-binded vitamin B12 - only by liver and kidneys. Two forms of cobalamin were identified as coenzymes of cellular reactions which are methylcobalamin (in cytoplasm) and hydroxyadenosylcobalamin (in mitochondria). The main causes of cobalamin deficiency are related to inadequate intake of animal products, autoimmune gastritis, pancreatic insufficiency, terminal ileum disease, syndrome of intestinal bacterial overgrowth. Relative deficiency may be seen in excessive binding of vitamin B12 to transcobalamin I. Cobalamin deficiency most significantly affects functions of blood, nervous system and inflammatory response. Anemia occurs in 13-15% of cases; macrocytosis is an early sign. The average size of neutrophils and monocytes is the most sensitive marker of megaloblastic hematopoiesis. The demands in vitamin B12 are particularly high in nervous tissue. Hypovitaminosis is accompanied by pathological lesions both in white and gray brain matter. Several types of neurological manifestations are described: subacute combined degeneration of spinal cord (funicular myelinosis), sensomotor polyneuropathy, optic nerve neuropathy, cognitive disorders. The whole range of neuropsychiatric disorders with vitamin B12 deficiency has not been studied well enough. Due to certain diagnostic difficulties they are often regarded as "cryptogenic", "reactive", "vascular¼ origin. Normal or decreased total plasma cobalamin level could not a reliable marker of vitamin deficiency. In difficult cases the content of holotranscobalamin, methylmalonic acid / homocysteine, and folate in the blood serum should be investigated besides carefully analysis of clinical manifestations.

[Changes in walking in the elderly]. / Izmeneniia khod'by pri starenii.

The article addresses gait disturbances in the elderly. It emphasizes that the system that maintains the balance in resting conditions and gait is based on the hierarchical principle and its function depends on the maintenance of integration between vestibular, visual and somatosensory information as well as on cognitive functions. Walking depends on the integrity of frontal-subcortical neuronal circles that support regulatory functions. The main pathogenetic mechanisms of age-related disturbances of balance and gait are a decrease in the efficacy of spinal motorneurons activation caused by Ia-afferentation, a decrease in cortical activation and excitability of corticospinal pathways and in the intensity of intracortical inhibition. The causes of age-related changes in walking are not confined to a single system (e.g., one sensory modality) but have a multisystem character and are involved in many structures. The author analyses the results of recent studies that use functional neuroimaging methods.

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy: current clinical and pathogenetic aspects.

The review considers modern ideas about the clinic and pathogenesis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE). It is discussed the present of cognitive impairment in this category of patients. The data of functional MRI are analyzed, and these results allow taking a fresh look at the origin of clinical disorders in this condition. The importance of cerebral connections disruption is emphasized. It is focused on the fact that in the functioning of the central nervous system the spontaneous activity of the brain has a significant importance. Separately is analyzed "the resting state". It is concluded that MHE, despite its minimal manifestations, is a clinically significant condition requiring attention of a specialists. With that, it is often not diagnosed on time in clinical practice, which could lead to more severe damage of the cerebral functions. As evidenced by the data obtained at the present time, quite extensive changes in the neuronal activity are underlid of the cognitive deficit.

[Traumatic brain injury: neurologic and psychiatric aspects]. / Travmaticheskoe povrezhdenie mozga: nevrologicheskie i psikhopatologicheskie aspekty.

Traumatic brain injury is among the leading social-medical problems that causes preventable deaths, health deterioration and disability in young individuals. It is manifested by neurologic and psychiatric disorders, firstly by neurocognitive impairment. Therapeutic interventions in traumatic brain injury include correction of cerebral disorders in the acute phase of trauma, treatment of neurocognitive impairment and symptomatic treatment of mental disorders. The efficacy of treatment of neurocognitive deficits associated with brain injury is still unsatisfactory, which determines the need to find new medicines and therapeutic approaches.

[Ethical aspects of teaching of nervous diseases]. / Éticheskie aspekty prepodavaniia nervnykh boleznei.

Ethical aspects of training of physicians are considered. The author highlights the importance of teaching the basic disciplines during the training of the neurologist. An analysis of most frequent mistakes that arise in practical activity as a consequence of overestimation of paraclinical methods of investigation, underestimation of a role of treatment that the patient receives due to other indications is presented. The formation of life attitude of the physician is the extremely important component of teaching process. One should not forget the lessons of history shown examples of physicians that gave their lives to save patients. Also, there are examples of physicians who had violated the fundamental humanitarian principles.

[Polyneuropathies in intestinal diseases]. / Polineiropatii pri zabolevaniiakh kishechnika.

Different aspects of polyneuropathies (PN) developed due to the deficit of group B vitamins in intestinal diseases are considered. Neurological disturbances related to intestinal diseases are caused by malabsorption that leads to the deficit of some compounds extremely important for normal cell metabolism, pathological changes of mucous coat of the stomach and intestine and higher sensitivity to the plant protein gluten. Vitamin B12 deficit can lead to a number of neurological disturbances; patients with pernicious anemia most often develop myelopathy and PN. An increase in serum vitamin B1 concentration is identified in 30-80% of patients with alcoholism. However, vitamin B1 deficit is seen also in ulcer disease, chronic gastritis, acute pancreatitis, esophageal metastatic lesions as well as in primary tumors of the stomach and intestine. Demyelinating as well as axonal PN may develop in patients with enteropathy. Gluten intolerance is the most often cause of PN in pathological changes in the intestine Possibilities of clinical and paraclinical diagnosis of these disorders are analyzed.

[All-Russian Consensus on Diagnosis and Treatment of Celiac Disease in Children and Adults]. / Vserossiiskii konsensus po diagnostike i lecheniyu tseliakii u detei i vzroslykh.

The paper presents the All-Russian consensus on the diagnosis and treatment of celiac disease in children and adults, which has been elaborated by leading experts, such as gastroenterologists and pediatricians of Russia on the basis of the existing Russian and international guidelines. The consensus approved at the 42nd Annual Scientific Session of the Central Research Institute of Gastroenterology on Principles of Evidence-Based Medicine into Clinical Practice (March 2-3, 2016). The consensus is intended for practitioners engaged in the management and treatment of patients with celiac disease. Evidence for the main provisions of the consensus was sought in electronic databases. In making recommendations, the main source was the publications included in the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, MEDLINE, and PubMed. The search depth was 10 years. Recommendations in the preliminary version were reviewed by independent experts. Voting was done by the Delphic polling system.

[Neurological disorders associated with gluten sensitivity]. / Nevrologicheskie rasstroistva, assotsiirovannye s chuvstvitel'nost'iu k gliutenu.

The review considers the pathogenetic, clinical, and therapeutic aspects of neurological disorders associated with gluten sensitivity. Gluten ataxia and polyneuropathy are most common. The clinical features of neurological disorders in patients with gluten sensitivity and the effects of a gluten-free diet are described.

[Eponyms related to Nazism neurosciences]. / Cvyazannye s natsizmom eponimy v neironaukakh.

The author considers eponymous names of CNS diseases related to physicians who had actively cooperated with Nazis during the Second World War. The data on the activity of some specialists in the field of neurosciences whose activity did not correspond to ethical values of the physician and the scientist are presented. The author suggests excluding a number of eponymous terms associated with the names of physicians, former Nazis or those who actively cooperated with Nazis.

[Characteristics of structural and functional organization of the brain]. / Osobennosti strukturnoi i funktsional'noi organizatsii golovnogo mozga.

Current conceptions on the fundamental mechanisms underlying brain functioning in normal conditions and pathological states are considered. The author emphasizes that a great progress in the field has been achieved after the implementation of neuroimaging methods in clinical practice. During the last time, attention is drawn to the connections between separate neurons as well as between different brain regions. Functional specialization and functional integration of different brain regions are key concepts of the higher brain function organization. The significance of the resting state of the brain, which is in fact the active process, is analyzed. The state of cerebral functions determines internal processes in the neuronal tissue. Different aspects of energy metabolism determining the normal functioning of cerebral structures are considered. The expediency of using the drugs influencing the energy metabolism, one of which is 2-ethyl-6-methyl-3-hydroxypyridine succinate (mexidol), is highlighted.

[Fabry's disease: Neurological disorders]. / Bolezn' Fabri: nevrologicheskie narusheniia.

The paper considers the pathogenesis and clinical features of Fabry's disease. It is stressed that along with cardiovascular system damage and kidney injury, there are peripheral and central nervous system lesions in this disease. In Fabry's disease, great attention is paid to cerebrovascular diseases that frequently give rise to disability. Peripheral neuropathy is mainly due to involvement of minor fibers and autonomic disorders. Signs that allow this disease to be diagnosed are given.

[The current concept of augmentation of treatment efficiency with antidepressant medication].

The introduction into clinical practice of new and highly effective antidepressants has certainly helped to resolve the problem of depression therapy. However, achieving a complete remission, which is a key point for therapy in depressed patients, remains a difficult task. It is known that a significant number of patients do not respond to antidepressants. So, special attention has been paid in recent years towards investigation of methods that could improve the treatment effectiveness in depressive. In this review presents the results of clinical trials of buspirone as an adjunctive therapy in cases with previous ineffective use of antidepressants in patients with major depressive disorder.

[Current approaches to treatment of migraine during pregnancy].

Migraine is one of the most common complaints in the majority of pregnant women. Migraine without aura is the most frequent cause of headache. Improvement of this disease is reported in 50-80% of patient. However, about one third of pregnant women have severe prolonged attacks with marked concomitant symptoms and maladaptation that necessarily need treatment. Authors consider the issues of differential diagnosis and principles of management of these patients.

[Neurological complications due to vitamin deficiencies after bariatric surgery].

The most effective treatment for pathological obesity is bariatric surgery; however, a patient may postoperatively develop vitamin deficiencies. In inadequate intake of food and its malabsorption after surgery, there are chiefly deficiencies of vitamins B1, B6, B12, and vitamin E, leading to complications as central and peripheral nervous system dysfunctions. The most marked nervous system changes are observed as polyneuropathy and severe Wernicke's encephalopathy in vitamin B, deficiency. Vitamin B12 deficiency clinically manifests as funicular myelosis and polyneuropathy. Polyneuropathy results from the inadequate intake of Vitamin B6 and vitamin E. The larger number of bariatric surgical patients generates a need for alertness to the development of neurological complications in this cohort of patients as only early treatment initiation guarantees a favorable outcome of neurologic deficit.