JNNP Podcast

The relationship between orthostatic hypotension and cognitive impairment in α-synucleinopathies

Dr Mario Masellis and Dr. Sean Udow from the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Canada, look at the potential association between orthostatic hypotension and cognitive impairment in α-synucleinopathies such as Parkinson’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies and multiple system atrophy.
Read the review published by JNNP here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/09/09/jnnp-2016-314123.abstract.

A clinical tool for predicting survival in motor neurone disease

Elizabeth Highton spoke to Professor Ammar Al-Chalabi from King’s College London about the development of a simple and clinically useful graphical model of predicting survival for motor neurone disease (MND) patients.
Read the article here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/07/26/jnnp-2015-312908.abstract

Latitude and disease severity in Multiple Sclerosis

Elizabeth Highton and Prof. Bruce Taylor discuss higher latitudes and its association with earlier age of onset of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
The international study, published by the JNNP, links latitude to the age at which symptoms of MS first start. Each 10ᵒ increase in latitude is associated with a 10 month earlier onset of symptoms among those of European descent.
Read the full article here: https://goo.gl/BmHXFo.

Do your kids play rugby? Risks for rugby union players from repeated concussions

Associate Editor of JNNP Alan Carson interviews Tom McMillan, Professor at the Institute for Health & Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, UK, about the paper "Long Term Health Outcomes after Exposure to Repeated Concussion in Elite Level Rugby Union Players".
Despite a high number of concussions in retired male Scottish international rugby players, the researchers didn’t find differences in mental health, social or work functioning late after injury.
However, subtle group differences were detected on two cognitive tests. Listen to this podcast for full details.
You can access this article here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/10/05/jnnp-2016-314279.full.

Genetics and the clinical course of multiple sclerosis

Professor Bruce Taylor and Elizabeth Highton discuss how certain genetic risk variants may predict the clinical course and progression of Multiple Sclerosis.
This podcast relates to the Patient Choice paper published in the JNNP November 2016 issue and is accessible here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/87/11/1204.full.

Is it time to focus on the common pathways linking neurodegenerative diseases?

Dr. Rebekah Ahmed talks about her recent JNNP review: Neuronal network disintegration and the common pathways linking neurodegenerative diseases.
Dr. Ahmed and colleagues critically evaluate a new approach to neurodegenerative disease, a focus on phenotypic presentation opposed to syndromic diagnosis. Via collaborative efforts, should we be looking at the commonalities between the neurodegenerative diseases?
Read the full article here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/05/12/jnnp-2014-308350.full.

October 2016 Edition: long-term outcomes after stroke; hereditary and inflammatory neuropathies

In this JNNP podcast, Elizabeth Highton speaks with Dr. Siobhan Crichton and Dr. Benjamin Bray about their study looking at patient outcomes up to 15 years after stroke.
Read their full paper here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/07/22/jnnp-2016-313361.full.
She is also joined over Skype by Professor Yusuf Rajabally who discusses his review examining the distinction between hereditary and inflammatory neuropathies and the instances whereby the distinction between the two is less clear.
His report is out in the JNNP and can be read here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/03/23/jnnp-2015-310835.full.

Selective vulnerability in clinical variants of Alzheimer’s Disease

Elizabeth Highton spoke with Professor Henrik Zetterberg from Sahlgrenska University in Sweden. They discuss his recent JNNP review looking at clinical variants of Alzheimer's Disease and whether selective vulnerability in the nervous system may help explain some of the different phenotypic expressions of the same disease.

Smoking: a negative prognostic for survival in motor neurone disease patients

Elizabeth Highton is joined by Prof. Adriano Chio to talk about his study:
Influence of cigarette smoking on ALS outcome: a population-based study.
His large population-based cohort study of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as motor neurone disease, demonstrated that smoking is linked to their shorter survival and smokers also tended to be younger when the symptoms first appeared.
Read the full article here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2016/08/19/jnnp-2016-313793.full.
The press release is available here: http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/suppl/2016/09/20/jnnp-2016-313793.DC1/jnnp-2016-313793supp_Pressrelease.pdf.

Review: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Motor Neuron Syndromes in Asia

In this podcast, Dr Nortina Shahrizaila, a neurologist from the University of Malaya, talks about her review regarding Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and motor neuron syndromes in Asia. She discusses with Elizabeth Highton what is known of ALS in Asia from an epidemiological perspective through to disease characterisation and particular phenotypes which can be seen in Asian patients.
They also discuss the Pan-Asian Consortium for Treatment and Research in ALS (PACTALS), whereby clinicians and researchers across the region have joined in collaborative effort to understand and treat this illness.
Read the full paper here:
http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/87/8/821.full.