News

Deep brain stimulation, stem cell treatment, studying mitochondria-to mark Parkinson’s Awareness Month, we review some noteworthy new concepts.

Advances in neurology science and patient care continue to make news even before the doors to the AAN 2015 Annual Meeting officially open on Saturday. These are the top stories.

The SPG is a promising target for migraine treatment, but robust evidence of efficacy for routine use of noninvasive device–mediated SPG blockade is needed.

A new way to treat dementia and other diagnosis and treatment developments are in the news.

A switch to a second-line drug in a patient receiving first-line therapies likely will be effective at decreasing disease activity.

While a majority of persons with the 4 most common cancers are told the diagnosis, fewer than half of persons with AD get that kind of information. This could be a problem.

There’s a new app for tracking symptoms of Parkinson disease, Alzheimer and Parkinson diseases may share characteristics with mad cow disease, and a skin test may one day be used to detect both AD and PD.

An FDA-approved drug for high blood pressure alleviates clinical symptoms of MS in mice, showing great promise for humans.

Focused ultrasound works like a noninvasive knife, cutting away amyloid plaques in mice. But is this new method safe and effective in humans?

Noninvasive measurements of cerebral hemodynamics and oxygenation can have a significant impact on the assessment of cerebrovascular conditions and can monitor the effects of clinical procedures on brain circulation.

Efficacy of acute medication matters beyond just treating a single migraine. It may increase the risk of worsened disease.

These agents lower cholesterol and prevent cardiovascular disease, but they may actually increase the risk of Parkinson disease. Caution advised.

The ultimate cause is found in only about half of patients, so improved understanding of the prognostic and diagnostic features is of high priority.

This treatment may be superior to current treatment for patients with severe multiple sclerosis that is not responding well to standard treatments.

Drugs often involve multiple daily doses with complex dosing regimens, but interventions that have been applied generically to patients with chronic diseases can be applied to these cases as well.

Favorable long-term results for patients with hard-to-treat epilepsy who undergo brain surgery offer good information for decision-making and counseling.

There is no approved screening tool for misophonia, but a case review can lead to a diagnosis. Several treatment options may aid in symptom management.

Scientists are testing alternative therapeutic approaches that may delay disease progression and even protect and regenerate neurons.

Anticholinergics could confer an increased risk, one dependent on the dose and amount of use. Give them to older patients or consider alternatives?

Symptoms occur in nearly 1 in 5 adults who have epilepsy. Their presence may have severe implications for patients’ quality of life.

A new study indicates that infection with Helicobacter pylori might lower the risk of multiple sclerosis, at least in women. Pharmaceutical products could provide a novel means of treatment.

Orexin B protects vulnerable midbrain neurons from degeneration and preserves their function. This sleep-promoting protein could provide a new target for potential treatments.

Despite butterbur’s potential efficacy, doubts are increasing about its long-term safety given of the risk of liver damage and the lack of an actively regulated preparation.

The risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy in patients receiving Tysabri for MS is a concern about this otherwise extremely effective therapy.

HDIT/HCT could induce sustained remission and neurological improvements in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Inquiring about memory in older persons during routine clinical examination may identify persons who might be at higher risk for stroke.

This report reflects the changing nature of guidelines toward evidence-based treatment rather than expert opinion. A companion piece will help translate evidence-based guidelines to clinical practice.

Men and women smoke for different reasons and activate different parts of the brain while smoking. These findings from “dopamine movies” could have implications for Parkinson disease.

Prostaglandin may block protective microglial cells in Alzheimer disease, a study shows. This work could form the basis for future therapies.