The Effectiveness of Intranasal Oxytocin on Addiction Severity Index and Anhedonia Symptoms in an Alcoholic Case with Oropharyngeal Cancer, a Protocol for a Single-case Experimental Design Pilot Study.

One of the goals of all pharmacological interventions aimed to increase the survival rate of patients with alcohol-dependent oropharyngeal cancers is to decrease alcohol use. Oxytocin is an alternative therapy for craving and alcohol management. However, the effectiveness of oxytocin on the severity of alcohol dependence has not been evaluated. In an ABABC study with a 6-month follow-up, during February 2015 to June 2016, a 67-year-old man with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma with comorbidity of alcohol dependence syndrome and anhedonia was selected by Respondent-Driven sampling (RDS). The patient was treated with intranasal oxytocin in two six-week stages (B1 and B2) and received placebo only in the other two stages (A1 and A2), and the follow-up results were evaluated at stage C. The data were analyzed by Generalized Estimation Equation (GEE) and Repeated Measures Correlation (rmcorr). Primary outcomes showed that addiction severity Index (ASI) was significantly reduced in five domains of medical status, occupational status, alcohol consumption, family status, and mental status (all p's < 0.05). There was no significant effect of treatment on legal status (all p's > 0.05). Also, social (p < 0.05) and physical (p < 0.01) anhedonia syndrome decreased in the treatment stages. However, these changes did not persist until the 6-month follow-up (all p's > 0.05). Secondary outcomes showed that there was a significant direct relationship between the severity of addiction and anhedonia (rmcorr = 0.01). The findings of this study showed that the reduction of oxytocin-induced neurotoxic symptoms led to a decrease in the severity of addiction and an improvement in the anhedonia syndrome.

Predictive factors for achieving independent walking in children with Guillain-Barre syndrome.

BackgroundTo determine the predictors of achieving independent walking at 2 and 6 months after onset of weakness in children with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS).MethodsChildren with GBS admitted to the Tabriz Children's Hospital were studied prospectively. All patients had frequent clinical evaluations until achieving independent walking. Unaided walking at 2 and 6 months and factors influencing these outcomes were determined using both univariate and multiple analyses.ResultsBetween 2003 and 2014, 324 children (mean age: 5.3±3.66 years) were admitted. The mean duration to independent walking was 2.97±3.02 months; 90.5% of patients could walk independently at 6 months. In the univariate analysis, disability score of >3 (P=0.03), autonomic nerve involvement (P=0.003), cranial nerve involvement (P=0.008), and absent compound muscle action potential (CMAP; P=0.048) were found to be significantly associated with poor walking outcome at 6 months. In the multivariate analysis, cranial nerve involvement (P=0.008) and absence of CMAP (P=0.022) were independently associated with poor functional outcome.ConclusionDisability score >3, cranial and autonomic nerve involvement, and absence of CMAP were predictors of independent walking in childhood GBS in this study; early rehabilitation program may prevent further impairments secondary to immobility in these patients.