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Chronic Pain Treatment: TCA’s, effexor, avoid narcotics Transient Global Amnesia



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Chronic Pain


Treatment: TCA’s, effexor, avoid narcotics

Transient Global Amnesia


Migraine vs. vascular / 25% recur once, 3% chronic / no treatment other than possibly anti-platelet agents if you like the vascular hypothesis
Concussion [NEJM]

clinical state resembles transient global amnesia / concussion does not cause a loss of autobiographical information (this is more c/w hysteria or malingering); concussion-related amnesiacs do not confabulate

Observation: at least 2 hours, up to overnight in hospital [table]

Imaging: decide whether to obtain CT [table]



post-concussion syndrome: headache (90%), dizziness, trouble concentrating in days-weeks-years following [table]

Vertigo
  • key point is to r/o brainstem/cerebellar stroke




Lasting > 24 hrs



Vestibular Neuritis

peaks 1st day / resolves from week to months / 50% observe viral illness

Romberg  usu. fall or tilt toward side of lesion / can often be distinguished from stroke by associated nystagmus (pure vertical almost always means stroke, whereas horizontal and torsional can be both / nystagmus usu. remains in same direction when gaze changes and is suppressed by visual fixation)
Stroke of Brainstem

may remain for days, usually improves within week of infarct / improvement for several months thereafter / can mimic vestibular neuritis by occurring without other symptoms of vertebrobasilar ischemia (diplopia, reduced vision, dysarthria, dysphagia, focal defects) / Romberg is variable


Multiple Sclerosis (see other)

can present with vertigo


Lasting Hours or minutes
Meniere’s

isolated, severe vertigo (may have reduced hearing, tinnitus, pressure) followed by several days of dizziness / audiogram shows low frequency pure-tone hearing loss that fluctuates in severity



Treatment: low salt diet, acetazolamide / antihistamines, anti-emetics, benzodiazepines may help with acute attacks / surgical decompression may be necessary in extreme cases
TIA of vertebrobasilar system

Migraine headaches

Seizures (rarely, ‘tornado epilepsy’ from focal Sz of temporal lobe)

Perilymph fistula (s/p otologic surgery)
Lasting Seconds
BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo)

from debris in semicircular canal

Findings: nystagmus or dizziness when quickly moved from sitting to lying position with head turned to one side (Nylen’s maneuver) / there should be no hearing loss, brainstem, cerebellar, or cranial nerve signs except N/V with severe episodes


      • Note: similar to vestibular neuritis, nystagmus is mostly unidirectional (horizontal or rotary) and does not change with direction of gaze; if vertical or changing with gaze  think stroke

Differential: hypothyroidism, AG or Lasix toxicity, stroke, trauma, Meniere’s labyrinthitis, acoustic neuroma

Treatment: Eppley maneuver (takes just a few minutes, patient learns to repeat at home) / fixation on near object sometimes stops episodes

CNS tumors
Glial Cell Tumors

Astrocytoma I

Anaplastic astrocytoma II

Glioblastoma multiforme III – butterfly glioma (spreads across midline) < 1 yr survival


Treatment: radiation therapy with temozolomide
Oligodendrogliomas – adults, slow, frontal lobes, calcifications

Ependymomas – children, 4th ventricles, increased ICP

Infratentorial – more in children

Cystic cerebellar astrocytomas

Ependymomas

Medulloblastoma – vermis in kids, hemispheres in adults

Meningioma – resection can be curative +/- radiation
30% of systemic CNS cancer spreads to lung, breast, melanoma, kidney, colon

Increased ICP: N/V, headache (worse in am, diffuse), bilateral papilledema, personality changes, coma, generalized seizures, focal signs (sensory/motor)

Ddx: bleed, neurodegenerative disease, abscess, AVM, meningitis, encephalitis, congenital hydrocephalus, toxic state

Diagnosis: CT/MRI - MRI with gallidium is best for astrocytoma type I

Treatment: +/- resection, +/- radiation, +/- chemotherapy, +/- steroids, +/- shunting
Acoustic neuromas (CN VIII)

usually presents with unilateral tinnitus, progressive hearing loss, not vertigo


Spinal Tumors

Mets from lung, breast, prostate

Multiple myeloma, lymphoma

Meningioma, neurofibromatomas

Astrocytomas, ependymomas

Presentation: dumbbell tumors  nerve root pain

Diagnosis: plain film, CT with myelography, MRI

Ddx: cervical spondylopathy/myelopathy, acute cervical disc protrusion, spinal angioma, acute transverse myelitis

Treatment: resection (if won’t produce instability), radiation
CNS aneurysms

Hunt & ? I  mannitol, Dilantin / IV & V  ventriculostomy (1st), surgery (2nd)



Diagnosis: CT / 4 vessel angio
Epidural Hematoma

Middle meningeal artery / “honeymoon period” / unilateral dilated pupil (herniation), bilateral/fixed/dilated (impending respiratory failure, death)



Treatment: burr hole, then craniotomy
Subdural Hematoma

Elderly, anticoagulation / Presentation: headache, drowsy (not so much seizures and papilledema)


Spondylosis

more cervical (C6 and C7) / protrusions of bone



Presentation: progressive, glove-like distribution / limited neck extension, diminished reflexes

Ddx: rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, cervical rib, scalene anticus, carpal tunnel syndrome, ulnar nerve palsy, Pancoast tumor, primary CNS tumor of brachial plexus

Diagnosis: plain film shows canal < 10 mm, decreased normal cervical lordosis / MRI for discs / CT for bones

Treatment: neck immobilization, cervical traction, muscle relaxants / 95% improve without surgery (osteophyte resorption) / surgery: anterior cervical disc fusion, laminectomy (decompression) with progressive spondylotic myelopathy (may still recur)
Disc Protrusion

more lumbar (L5 and S1) / nerve root compression



Presentation: radiating pain (sciatica), pain with straight leg raise (ipsilateral and contralateral), pain with direct palpation of nerve root, decreased ankle reflex, weakness of dorsiflexion

Treatment: elective laminectomy for chronic pain / urgent laminectomy for foot drop and cauda equina syndrome (urinary retention, perineal numbness, bilateral sciatica) / Opinion: laminectomy is often only a temporizing procedure that may hasten spinal immobility

Psychiatric



Panic Attacks

Incidence: 3% over lifetime

Note: among postmenopausal women, panic attacks are relatively common, and may be an independent risk factor for heart disease and stroke.



Ddx: thyrotoxicosis, hypoglycemia, pheochromocytoma, MVP (arrhythmia)

Treatment: acute  benzodiazepines, long-term  TCA, SSRI
Anorexia

< 75% expected body weight / should be hospitalized / complications of refeedings (heart failure, abnormal LFT, low Mg and PO4 (so avoid TCAs with possibility of prolonged QT), no psychiatric medication has yet been shown completely effective in this disorder 1/07
Ophthalmology

Inflammatory Conditions
Conjunctivitis

Discharge [pic][pic]

Viral [pic] (HSV, adenovirus, others)

Bacterial [pic][pic] (Neisseria, others)

Other
Endopthalmitis [pic]

hypopyon (pus in anterior chamber) [pic]



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