Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0027066 (myoclonus)
 4,275 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Biochemical studies of serotonin metabolism and a therapeutic trial of L-5-hydroxytryptophan (L-5-HTP) in combination with carbidopa were carried out in 19 patients with myoclonus. In 6 patients with intention myoclonus, the cerebrospinal fluid concentration of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, a metabolite of serotonin was found to be significantly decreased. L-5-HTP with carbidopa dramatically decreased the frequency and intensity of myoclonus, particularly in those patients with a diagnosis of postanoxic intention myoclonus. The major side effects have been anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and mental stimulation. We suggest that a deficiency of brain serotonin is causally related to myoclonic muscle movements and the therapeutic efficacy of L-5-HTP plus carbidopa may be due to the repletion of serotonin in regions of the brain where serotoninergic neurons have degenerated.
 ...
PMID:Serotonin and myoclonus. 79 Jan 70

Fluoxetine is a bicyclic antidepressant that is a specific and potent inhibitor of the presynaptic reuptake of serotonin. It has essentially no effect on the reuptake of norepinephrine or other neurotransmitters. Similarly, it has negligible binding affinity for neurotransmitter receptor sites. It is well absorbed after oral administration, with absolute bioavailability in dogs of approximately 72 +/- 27.6%. The mean Tmax is between 4 and 8 hours, and it is approximately 94% protein bound. After a single dose, the elimination half-life is 1-3 days. After long-term administration, the elimination half-life averages 4 days. Its pharmacokinetics appear nonlinear. It is metabolized to an active metabolite norfluoxetine, which is also specific for the inhibition of serotonin reuptake. Norfluoxetine's elimination half-life averaged 7 days after long-term administration. Little is known about potential drug interactions; however, fluoxetine appears to have minimal clinically relevant interactions. Fluoxetine is indicated in the treatment of major depression. Its efficacy is comparable to the tricyclics and it has a similar onset of action. Although doses as high as 80 mg/day have been used, the optimal dosage range appears to be 20-40 mg once daily. Fluoxetine has been used with success in obsessive-compulsive disorder and intention myoclonus, however, its use in these disorders remains investigational. The frequency of side effects is low and dose related; the most common effects are nausea, anxiety, insomnia, anorexia, diarrhea, nervousness, and headache. Eight reports of intentional overdose with fluoxetine alone resulted in no deaths and mild adverse effects. It will be marketed as 20-mg capsules under the brand name of Prozac. Although fluoxetine should be added to formularies, its use should be reserved for treatment of those who do not respond to or do not tolerate tricyclic agents.
 ...
PMID:Fluoxetine: a serotonin-specific, second-generation antidepressant. 355 56

A case of respiratory myoclonus in a 45 year-old male was studied by electromyography. He complained of anorexia, involuntary swinging movement of the thorax and trunk, and epigastric pulsation. Electromyographic studies showed synchronous rhythmic grouped discharges at the of 2 to 3 Hz from the bilateral 8th to 10th intercostal muscles, the right iliocostalis lumborum muscle, and the left hemidiaphragm only during the expiratory phase. They disappeared on inspiration and forced expiration. Anesthetic block of the left phrenic nerve abolished both the voluntary and myoclonic movements of the left hemidiaphragm. Abnormal excitation of the central nervous system and possible irritation of the afferent pathways were postulated.
 ...
PMID:Respiratory myoclonus. Report of a case with electromyographic study. 377 21

Dementia, a syndrome of acquired intellectual deterioration, is an etiologically nonspecific condition that can be permanent or reversible. When evaluating demented patients, a careful exposure history will determine the possible role of drugs, metals, or toxins. Physical examination may reveal focal deficits in cases of intracranial mass lesions and spasticity or ataxia of the lower limbs if hydrocephalus is present. Coexistence of dementia and a peripheral neuropathy usually indicates the existence of a toxic or metabolic disorder. Depressed mood, sleep disturbance, anorexia, impotence, constipation, and psychomotor retardation indicate the presence of a depressive syndrome. Asterixis, myoclonus, and postural tremor are common in toxic-metabolic dementias, whereas resting tremor, choreoathetosis, or rigidity occur in progressive extrapyramidal disorder. EEG is focally abnormal in cases of cerebral mass lesions and shows generalized slowing in toxic-metabolic encephalopathies. CT will aid in the identification of hydrocephalus, subdural hematomas, and intracranial mass lesions. A thorough laboratory evaluation including complete blood count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, electrolytes, blood urea nitrogen and blood sugar, liver and thyroid function tests, serum calcium and phosphorus levels, B12 and folate levels, serum copper and ceruloplasmin, VDRL, chest X-ray, electrocardiogram, and lumbar puncture may demonstrate treatable disorders that are adversely affecting intellectual function. Elderly individuals are particularly susceptible to the effects of toxic or metabolic disorders, and a mild dementia may be exaggerated by relatively minor fluctuations in metabolic status. Treatable causes of dementia should be sought in all demented patients.
 ...
PMID:Treatable dementias. 635 58

A 30 year old female was exposed to chlordane through careless and excessive domestic use over a 1 to 4 week period. Early symptoms included circumoral numbness, anorexia, nausea, and fatigue. Myoclonic jerks occurred after a delay of one month. Malaise and anorexia became the dominant symptoms leading to referral at six months. Dysfunctional bleeding was attributed to hepatic enzyme induction by the chlordane and increased metabolism of contraceptive medication. Cholestyramine increased the stool elimination of chlordane.
 ...
PMID:Subacute chlordane poisoning. 653 48

The diazepam withdrawal syndrome was studied in 10 patients who had abused the drug for 3 to 14 years. In the previous 6 months their consumption of diazepam had ranged from 60 to 120 mg daily; none had used other drugs during this period. The withdrawal period lasted about 6 weeks. The intensity of the symptoms and signs was high initially, fell during the first 2 weeks, then rose again in the third week, before finally declining. Three groups of symptoms and signs were identified. Group A symptoms occurred throughout withdrawal and included tremor, anorexia, insomnia and myoclonus. Group B symptoms and signs were largely confined to the first 10 days and were those of a toxic psychosis. Group C symptoms reached a peak in the third and fourth weeks of withdrawal and were characterized by sense perceptions that were either heightened or lowered. The symptom groups, the presence of tremor and myoclonus, and the relief of symptoms by a test dose permit diazepam withdrawal to be distinguished from anxiety. The biphasic course of the symptoms is probably related to the pharmacokinetics of diazepam.
 ...
PMID:Diazepam withdrawal syndrome: its prolonged and changing nature. 713 56

We reported a case of opsoclonus-myoclonus syndrome. A 63-year-old man was admitted to Kenwakai Hospital with rapidly progressing symptoms, including lumbago, whole body pain, vertigo, nausea, and anorexia. He became bed-ridden because of severe vertigo and truncal ataxia. Five days after admission, he developed opsoclonus followed by myoclonus and mild disturbance of consciousness, but he showed no appendicular ataxia or pyramidal tract sign. He was treated with prednisolone, 40 mg/day, which was effective for disturbance of consciousness, but opsoclonus and myoclonus persisted. He died of liver dysfunction and ventricular fibrillation 3 weeks after onset. Blood examination revealed high LDH (1,106 IU/l), Al-P, and gamma-GTP titers. Tumor markers were normal except for increase NSE activity (129 ng/ml). The cerebrospinal fluid showed normal cell count, 63.9 mg/dl of protein, 7.3 mg/dl of IgG, and normal glucose. A cranial CT scan showed an old lacune only. Chest rentgenogram and CT scan revealed mediastinal and hilar lymph node enlargement. An abdominal CT scan showed multiple low density masses in the liver. Small cell lung cancer associated with opsoclonus-myoclonus syndrome was suspected. Western blot analysis revealed that his serum reacted with protein in the cerebellum, cerebrum, and dorsal root ganglion with a molecular weight of 77 kDa. This is the first time such an antibody was ever been detected in patients with opsoclonus-myoclonus syndrome. The molecular weights of the antigens previously found by the serum of patients with this syndrome, were 55 kDa and 80 kDa in patients with breast cancer, and 210 kDa in patients with neuroblastoma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
 ...
PMID:[A case of opsoclonus-myoclonus syndrome associated with anti-central nervous system antibody]. 782 Sep 64

A patient with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) was treated with an intraventricular alpha interferon (IFN-alpha) through an Ommaya reservoir. A 17-year-old boy, who had a history of measles exposure at age 1, showed forgetfulness, difficulties in calculation, reading and writing. Two months later he developed generalized convulsions and myoclonic spasms. He was admitted to the National Saigata Hospital in May 20, 1992. On admission, anti-measles antibody titer in the CSF was 1:16 by complement-fixation method. His EEG revealed a periodic synchronous discharge. Therefore, the diagnosis of SSPE was confirmed. An Ommaya reservoir was implanted on July 7, 1992, and an intraventricular administration of INF-alpha was begun after two weeks. The dose of INF-alpha was gradually increased from 1.0 x 10(6) IU/m2 to 2.0 x 10(6) IU/m2 twice a week. Fever, vomiting and anorexia were developed when the INF-alpha injection was first started. When he received a total dose of 8.0 x 10(6) IU, he became bed ridden for remarkable lethargy. The lethargy was continued for about 10 days despite the therapy was interrupted, and then he gradually became alert. The frequency of myoclonus became more frequent and mentality got worse, so the treatment with INF-alpha was tried again in decreasing the dose to 1.0 x 10(6) IU/m2 twice a week. However, be became drowsy again after he received a total of 7.5 x 10(6) IU. With intramuscular or intravenous administrations of the high doses of INF-alpha (> or = 1.0 x 10(7) IU), significant neurological abnormalities were reported to occur.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
 ...
PMID:[A case of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis treated with intraventricular interferon--the side effects of interferon-alpha to the central nervous system]. 815 18

An 18-year-old female had common cold and insomnia in early March 1987. Later, abnormal speech and behavior, emotional incontinence, anorexia and consciousness disturbance appeared. On March 19, she was admitted to our hospital in semi-comatose state. Myoclonus-like movement on hands was observed, and epileptic attacks with tonic and clonic convulsions occasionally occurred. There were no neurological findings that suspected cerebral focal lesions. The respiration was assisted through tracheal intubation. Laboratory examinations showed inflammatory reactions (CRP+2, WBC 10,600) and transient high levels serum CK (6,215 IU). As she had bradycardia (30-40/min) with complete AV block on ECG, the pacemaker was implanted. The complication of myocarditis was suspected. EEG showed bilateral slow waves (3-6Hz), dominantly in frontal areas. Brain CT and CSF examinations were normal. After the combined administration of ara-A, dexamethasone and anti-convulsant, the consciousness level was recovered within a month. The serum antibody against coxsackie virus B4 alone was significantly increased. We concluded that coxsackie virus B4 caused acute encephalitis with mental symptoms and myocarditis with AV block. Recently, cytomegalovirus was reported to be the causative virus in a young female with non-HSV encephalitis who showed mental symptoms with good prognosis, but coxsackie virus B4 should also be considered as one of the causative viruses.
 ...
PMID:[Coxsackie virus B4 encephalitis in a young female who developed mental symptoms, and consciousness disturbance, and completely recovered]. 959 14

Prediction of future suffering could improve palliative care. To identify the factors contributing to physical symptoms, a prospective study was performed on two series of hospice inpatients with cancer (n = 150 and n = 200, respectively). Physical symptoms, patients' characteristics, and tumor locations were recorded using a structured protocol on admission and throughout the clinical course. Common symptoms on admission and during the patient's course were pain (65%, 88%), general malaise (58%, 77%), anorexia (57%, 94%), constipation (33%, 71%), dyspnea (33%, 66%), nausea/vomiting (29%, 48%), cough/sputum (29%, 48%), edema (27%, 65%), fever (26%, 70%), abdominal swelling (26%, 42%), and dry mouth (25%, 61%), respectively. The mean number of symptoms was 5.7 +/- 3.0 on admission and 9.6 +/- 3.1 during the course. Factors that contributed to the symptoms were young age (pain, abdominal swelling, dry mouth), performance status (anorexia, general malaise, edema, dyspnea), brain tumor (paralysis), neoplasms of lung/pleura (dyspnea, cough/sputum, death rattle), bone metastasis (pain, paralysis), gastric/pancreas cancer (abdominal swelling), peritoneal metastasis (general malaise, edema, nausea/vomiting, abdominal swelling, dry mouth), opioids (constipation, dry mouth, myoclonus), anticholinergics (dry mouth), and antidopaminergics (myoclonus). Opioid requirement was positively correlated with the presence of bone metastasis, and negatively correlated with age and brain involvement. Additional opioids were frequently used in the final 48 hours in cases with lung/pleura neoplasms. These data suggest that terminal symptoms in cancer patients are determined by local and/or general factors. Clinicians can predict the probability of future symptoms from patients' characteristics, general condition, tumor locations, and medications.
 ...
PMID:Contributing factors to physical symptoms in terminally-ill cancer patients. 1058 57


1 2 Next >>