Neuroprotective and consequent neurorehabilitative clinical outcomes, in patients treated with the pleiotropic drug cerebrolysin.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Discovery of neurotrophic factors--emblematic the nerve growth factor (NGF)--resulted in better approaching central nervous system (CNS) lesions. Recently, another crucial property has been unveiled their rather unique pleiotropic effect. Cerebrolysin is a peptide mixture that penetrates the blood-brain barrier in significant amounts and mimics the effects of NGF. METHODS: Comparative analysis: Cerebrolysin treated (10 ml x 2/day, i.v. x 3 weeks) vs. non-treated, in patients (all received aside, a rather equivalent complementary, pharmacological and physical, therapy). Two lots of patients, admitted in our Physical & Rehabilitation (neural-muscular) Medical-PR(n-m)M-Clinic Division, during 2007-2009 69 treated with Cerebrolysin (22 F, 47 M; Average 59.333; Mean of age 61.0 Years old; Standard deviation 16.583) and 70 controls (41 F, 29 M; A 70.014; M.o.a. 70.5 Y.o.; S.d. 6.270) were studied. The total number of assessed items was 13 most contributive in relation with the score of Functional Independence Measure at discharge (d FIM), were admission (a FIM), number of physical therapy days (PT), number of hospitalization days (H), age (A) and--relatively--days until the first knee functional extension (KE). Concomitantly, the main/key, focused on neuro-motor rehabilitative outcomes, functional/analytical parameters, have been assessed regarding the speed in achieving their functional recovery. RESULTS: Concerning d FIM, there have not been objectified significant differences between the two lots (p=0.2453) but regarding key, focused on neuro-motor rehabilitative outcomes, functional/analytical parameters KE (p=0.0007) and days until the first time recovery of the ability to walk between parallel bars (WPB--p=0.0000)--highly significant differences in favor of Cerebrolysin lot resulted. CONCLUSION: Cerebrolysin administration, as neurorehabilitative outcomes, proved to hasten, statistically significant, especially the recovery of some critical, for standing and walking, parameters. Thus encouraged, we have now initiated a comprehensive national, 5 year retrospective, multi-centre--based on unitary data acquisition frame and mathematical apparatus--study, to evaluate the results of the treatment with Cerebrolysin in traumatic brain injuries (TBI).