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Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), or acute demyelinating encephalomyelitis, is a rare autoimmune disease marked by a sudden, widespread attack of inflammation in the brain and spinal cord. As well as causing the brain and spinal cord to become inflamed, ADEM also attacks the nerves of the central nervous system and damages their myelin insulation, which, as a result, destroys the white matter. It is often triggered by a viral infection or vaccinations.
Bluetongue disease is a noncontagious, insect-borne, viral disease of ruminants, mainly sheep and less frequently cattle, yaks, goats, buffalo, deer, dromedaries, and antelope. It is caused by Bluetongue virus (BTV). The virus is transmitted by the midges Culicoides imicola, Culicoides variipennis, and other culicoids.
Transverse myelitis (TM) is a rare neurological condition in which the spinal cord is inflamed. Transverse implies that the inflammation extends horizontally across the spinal cord. Partial transverse myelitis and partial myelitis are terms sometimes used to specify inflammation that only affects part of the width of the spinal cord. TM is characterized by weakness and numbness of the limbs, deficits in sensation and motor skills, dysfunctional urethral and anal sphincter activities, and dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system that can lead to episodes of high blood pressure. Signs and symptoms vary according to the affected level of the spinal cord. The underlying cause of TM is unknown. The spinal cord inflammation seen in TM has been associated with various infections, immune system disorders, or damage to nerve fibers, by loss of myelin. As opposed to leukomyelitis which affects only the white matter, it affects the entire cross-section of the spinal cord. Decreased electrical conductivity in the nervous system can result.
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduced or alternation in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, trouble speaking, memory problems, and problems with hearing.
Myelitis is inflammation of the spinal cord which can disrupt the normal responses from the brain to the rest of the body, and from the rest of the body to the brain. Inflammation in the spinal cord, can cause the myelin and axon to be damaged resulting in symptoms such as paralysis and sensory loss. Myelitis is classified to several categories depending on the area or the cause of the lesion; however, any inflammatory attack on the spinal cord is often referred to as transverse myelitis.
Scrapie is a fatal, degenerative disease affecting the nervous systems of sheep and goats. It is one of several transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), and as such it is thought to be caused by a prion. Scrapie has been known since at least 1732 and does not appear to be transmissible to humans. However, new studies suggest a link between scrapie and sporadic CJD.
Lumbar puncture (LP), also known as a spinal tap, is a medical procedure in which a needle is inserted into the spinal canal, most commonly to collect cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) for diagnostic testing. The main reason for a lumbar puncture is to help diagnose diseases of the central nervous system, including the brain and spine. Examples of these conditions include meningitis and subarachnoid hemorrhage. It may also be used therapeutically in some conditions. Increased intracranial pressure is a contraindication, due to risk of brain matter being compressed and pushed toward the spine. Sometimes, lumbar puncture cannot be performed safely. It is regarded as a safe procedure, but post-dural-puncture headache is a common side effect if a small atraumatic needle is not used.
Sciatica is pain going down the leg from the lower back. This pain may go down the back, outside, or front of the leg. Onset is often sudden following activities like heavy lifting, though gradual onset may also occur. The pain is often described as shooting. Typically, symptoms are only on one side of the body. Certain causes, however, may result in pain on both sides. Lower back pain is sometimes present. Weakness or numbness may occur in various parts of the affected leg and foot.
Oligodendrocytes, or oligodendroglia, are a type of neuroglia whose main functions are to provide support and insulation to axons in the central nervous system of some vertebrates, equivalent to the function performed by Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system. Oligodendrocytes do this by creating the myelin sheath. A single oligodendrocyte can extend its processes to 50 axons, wrapping approximately 1 μm of myelin sheath around each axon; Schwann cells, on the other hand, can wrap around only one axon. Each oligodendrocyte forms one segment of myelin for several adjacent axons.
Paraplegia is an impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities. The word comes from Ionic Greek (παραπληγίη) "half-stricken". It is usually caused by spinal cord injury or a congenital condition that affects the neural (brain) elements of the spinal canal. The area of the spinal canal that is affected in paraplegia is either the thoracic, lumbar, or sacral regions. If four limbs are affected by paralysis, tetraplegia or quadriplegia is the correct term. If only one limb is affected, the correct term is monoplegia. Spastic paraplegia is a form of paraplegia defined by spasticity of the affected muscles, rather than flaccid paralysis.
Sir Ludwig Guttmann was a German-British neurologist who established the Stoke Mandeville Games, the sporting event for people with disabilities (PWD) that evolved in England into the Paralympic Games. A Jewish doctor who fled Nazi Germany just before the start of the Second World War, Guttmann was a founding father of organized physical activities for people with disabilities.
A spinal cord injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that causes temporary or permanent changes in its function. Symptoms may include loss of muscle function, sensation, or autonomic function in the parts of the body served by the spinal cord below the level of the injury. Injury can occur at any level of the spinal cord and can be complete, with a total loss of sensation and muscle function at lower sacral segments, or incomplete, meaning some nervous signals are able to travel past the injured area of the cord up to the Sacral S4-5 spinal cord segments. Depending on the location and severity of damage, the symptoms vary, from numbness to paralysis, including bowel or bladder incontinence. Long term outcomes also range widely, from full recovery to permanent tetraplegia or paraplegia. Complications can include muscle atrophy, loss of voluntary motor control, spasticity, pressure sores, infections, and breathing problems.
Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) is an etiologically heterogeneous syndrome predominantly characterized by acute inflammation of the optic nerve and the spinal cord (myelitis). Episodes of ON and myelitis can be simultaneous or successive. A relapsing disease course is common, especially in untreated patients. In more than 80% of cases, NMO is caused by immunoglobulin G autoantibodies to aquaporin 4 (anti-AQP4), the most abundant water channel protein in the central nervous system. A subset of anti-AQP4-negative cases is associated with antibodies to myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (anti-MOG). Rarely, NMO may occur in the context of other autoimmune diseases or infectious diseases. In some cases, the etiology remains unknown.
Lhermitte phenomenon, also called the barber chair phenomenon, is an uncomfortable "electrical" sensation that runs through the back and into the limbs. The sensation can feel like it goes up or down the spine.
Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, sometimes experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an animal model of brain inflammation. It is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS). It is mostly used with rodents and is widely studied as an animal model of the human CNS demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS) and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM). EAE is also the prototype for T-cell-mediated autoimmune disease in general.
Anterior spinal artery syndrome is syndrome caused by ischemia of the anterior spinal artery, resulting in loss of function of the anterior two-thirds of the spinal cord. The region affected includes the descending corticospinal tract, ascending spinothalamic tract, and autonomic fibers. It is characterized by a corresponding loss of motor function, loss of pain and temperature sensation, and hypotension.
Visna virus from the genus Lentivirus and subfamily Orthoretrovirinae, is a "prototype" retrovirus that causes encephalitis and chronic pneumonitis in sheep. It is known as visna when found in the brain, and maedi when infecting the lungs. Lifelong, persistent infections in sheep occur in the lungs, lymph nodes, spleen, joints, central nervous system, and mammary glands; The condition is sometimes known as "ovine progressive pneumonia" (OPP), particularly in the United States, or "Montana sheep disease". White blood cells of the monocyte/macrophage lineage are the main target of visna virus.
Myelomalacia is a pathological term referring to the softening of the spinal cord. Possible causes of myelomalacia include cervical myelopathy, hemorrhagic infarction, or acute injury, such as that caused by intervertebral disc extrusion.
Open aortic surgery (OAS), also known as open aortic repair (OAR), describes a technique whereby an abdominal, thoracic or retroperitoneal surgical incision is used to visualize and control the aorta for purposes of treatment. OAS is used to treat aneurysms of the abdominal and thoracic aorta, aortic dissection, acute aortic syndrome, and aortic ruptures. Aortobifemoral bypass is also used to treat atherosclerotic disease of the abdominal aorta below the level of the renal arteries. In 2003, OAS was surpassed by endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) as the most common technique for repairing abdominal aortic aneurysms in the United States. In OAS for aortic aneurysm, the aneurysmal portion of the aorta is replaced with a graft, usually made of dacron or PTFE.
Spinal cord injury research seeks new ways to cure or treat spinal cord injury in order to lessen the debilitating effects of the injury in the short or long term. There is no cure for SCI, and current treatments are mostly focused on spinal cord injury rehabilitation and management of the secondary effects of the condition. Two major areas of research include neuroprotection, ways to prevent damage to cells caused by biological processes that take place in the body after the insult, and neuroregeneration, regrowing or replacing damaged neural circuits.
References
- ↑ BARRAQUER-FERRE L (1956). "Curable acute spasmodic paraplegia (Reversible leukomyelitis)". Revue Neurologique. 95 (5): 387–9. PMID 13432477.
- ↑ ROGER H; POURSINES Y; ROGER J; TAMALET J (1951). "Acute cervical leukomyelitis of postinfectious type with multiple demyelinizing and necrotic microfoci". Revue Neurologique. 84 (1): 73–8. PMID 14845367.
- 1 2 Servant, S. (1999). "Entzündliche Rückenmarkerkrankungen". In Knecht, S. (ed.). Klinische Neurologie. pp. 485–496. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-08118-1_21. ISBN 978-3-662-08119-8.
- ↑ Kwiecien, Jacek M.; Jarosz, Bozena; Urdzikova, Lucia Machova; Rola, Radoslaw; Dabrowski, Wojciech (2015). "Original article Subdural infusion of dexamethasone inhibits leukomyelitis after acute spinal cord injury in a rat model". Folia Neuropathologica. 1 (1): 41–51. doi: 10.5114/fn.2015.49973 . PMID 25909874.
- ↑ Adedeji, Adeyemi; Barr, Bradd; Gomez-Lucia, Esperanza; Murphy, Brian (2013). "A Polytropic Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis Virus Promoter Isolated from Multiple Tissues from a Sheep with Multisystemic Lentivirus-Associated Inflammatory Disease". Viruses. 5 (8): 2005–2018. doi: 10.3390/v5082005 . PMC 3761239 . PMID 23955501.
- ↑ Wilkie, I. W. (1980). "Leukomyelitis in the goat: A report of three cases". The Canadian Veterinary Journal. 21 (7): 203–5. PMC 1789762 . PMID 7427848.
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