Lumbosacral radiculopathy--factors effects on it's severity.

Want to demonstrate factors which effect appearance and severity of lumbosacral radiculopathy. We analysed 100 electromyoneurographically examined patients. Patients were categorised on bases of their BMI (body mass index), sex, age, job type (physical or intellectual job), and chronic diseases (diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension and hyperlipidemia). Data were evaluated using the chi2 test with the significance of p < 0.05. Obese patients had severe radiculopathy more often than non-obese patients (p < 0.044). Severe radiculopathy appeared more frequently in male (p < 0.001), elderly patients (p < 0.023), and patients doing physically intensive jobs (p < 0.002). No statistic significance was found in relationship between patients suffering from diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension, and hyperlipidemia, and the severity of lumbosacral radiculopathy. Obese patients, males, elderly patients, and patients doing physically intensive jobs are at a bigger risk of suffering from severe radiculopathy. Diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension, and hyperlipidemia do not influence the severity of lumbosacral radiculopathy.

Patients review: drug-induced movement disorders.

Objective of this paper is to review drug-induced movement disorders (D-IMD) treated patients on Department of Neurology in University Hospital Osijek. We reviewed patients treated during 10 years period (from 1992 to 2002). Analysed group consisted of 14 patients. Reasons for hospitalisation were swallowing problems in 6 patients, neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) in 3 patients, stroke in 2 patients, bolus choking in 2 patients, and speech disturbance in 1 patient. Working diagnosis for most of our patients was neurological disease, yet only later D-IMD diagnosis was established excluding primary neurological disease, or as associated disease to basic neurological disorder. Nine patients have diagnosed as Parkinson syndrome, 3 patients as NMS, and 4 as orolingual dyskinesia, either autonomously, or in combination with Parkinson syndrome. D-IMD was most frequently caused by neuroleptics. Thus the small number of patients hospitalised regarding this syndrome on Department of Neurology.