SPECT Cerebral Perfusion Patterns in Isolated Cervical Dystonia.

Background And Purpose: Isolated cervical dystonia is characterized by sustained or intermittent neck movements caused by involuntary muscle contractions, resulting in abnormal movements or postures of cervical areas. We measured altered regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in patients with idiopathic cervical dystonia compared to healthy controls and explored the correlation between dystonia severity and rCBF patterns.

Methods: A total of 38 patients with isolated cervical dystonia and 29 healthy controls were recruited.

Altered electroencephalography-based source functional connectivity in patients with generalized anxiety disorder.

Objective: To explore the neurophysiological markers of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), we performed electroencephalography (EEG) in patients with GAD and assessed lagged phase synchronization (LPS), a measure of brain functional connectivity (FC).

Methods: Cortical EEG sources were modelled by exact low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (eLORETA). Graph theory analyses were applied to undirected and weighted networks obtained by LPS to explore the FC differences between patients with GAD and controls.

Repeated neuromodulation with low-intensity focused ultrasound in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

BackgroundLow-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU), a non-invasive targeted brain stimulation technology, has shown promise for therapeutic applications in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Despite its potential, the implications of repeated LIFU neuromodulation in AD patients remain to be investigated.ObjectiveThis pilot study evaluated the safety and potential to improve cognition and functional connectivity following repeated LIFU treatment in AD patients.

The association between anhedonia and prefrontal cortex activation in patients with major depression: a functional near-infrared spectroscopy study.

This study investigated cerebral blood flow characteristics using functional nearinfrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in agomelatine-treated depressed patients with anhedonia. The level of anhedonia was assessed by the Snaith Hamilton Rating Scale (SHAPS) and Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale 5-item (MADRS 5-item) score. All 84 patients were evaluated on the day of the study initiation and followed at week 1, 4 and 8 after the study initiation.

Comparing Different Montages of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Treating Treatment-Resistant Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: A Randomized, Single-Blind Clinical Trial.

: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation for treatment-resistant obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). We aim to compare the treatment outcomes of a newly developed dual-site cathodal tDCS method over the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) and two previously reported montages (cerebellum-OFC and pre-SMA) in patients with treatment-resistant OCD. : Eighteen OCD patients were randomly assigned to receive twice-daily 2 mA/20 min sessions for 10 consecutive weekdays, with the active cathode placed on the cerebellum-OFC, bilateral pre-SMA, or OFC-pre-SMA tDCS.

Paradoxical Reaction to Antituberculosis Therapy Mimicking Tumor Progression in Lung Cancer Patient.

We describe the case of a 67-year-old man with lung cancer, who developed pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) following chemotherapy and subsequently exhibited a paradoxical reaction on positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) after initiating antituberculosis therapy. While pulmonary consolidations improved with antituberculosis treatment, newly detected hypermetabolic mediastinal lymph nodes appeared on PET/CT. Based on the clinical course, we provisionally concluded that the mediastinal lymphadenopathy represented a paradoxical reaction.

Structural and functional alterations in hypothalamic subregions in male patients with alcohol use disorder.

Background: The hypothalamus is involved in stress regulation and reward processing, with its various nuclei exhibiting unique functions and connections. However, human neuroimaging studies on the hypothalamic subregions are limited in drug addiction. This study examined the volumes and functional connectivity of hypothalamic subregions in individuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Altered electroencephalography-based source functional connectivity in drug-free patients with major depressive disorder.

Background: Compared to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), source localization of a scalp-recorded electroencephalogram (EEG) provides higher temporal resolution and frequency synchronization to better understand the potential neurophysiological origins of disrupted functional connectivity (FC) in major depressive disorder (MDD). The present study aimed to investigate EEG-sourced measures to examine the FC in drug-free patients with MDD.

Method: Resting-state 32-channel EEG were recorded in 84 drug-free patients with MDD and 143 healthy controls, and the cortical source signals were estimated.

Effects of online high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation over left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on predominant negative symptoms and EEG functional connectivity in patients with schizophrenia: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial.

Aims: Schizophrenia, a debilitating mental disorder, is characterized by persistent negative symptoms such as avolition and anhedonia. Currently, there are no effective treatments available for these symptoms. Thus, our study aims to assess the efficacy of online high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation (online HD-tDCS) in addressing the negative symptoms of schizophrenia, utilizing a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled trial design.

Prophylactic effect of pilocarpine on acute sialadenitis following radioactive iodine therapy in thyroid cancer patients.

Our aim was to evaluate the effect of prophylactic pilocarpine on acute salivary symptoms after radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. We enrolled 88 patients (76 women and 12 men; mean age: 47 years; range: 20-74 years) with differentiated thyroid cancer who received RAI. Patients were divided into pilocarpine (51 patients) and control (37 patients) groups.

Robotic transcranial magnetic stimulation in the treatment of depression: a pilot study.

There has been an increasing demand for robotic coil positioning during repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) treatment. Accurate coil positioning is crucial because rTMS generally targets specific brain regions for both research and clinical application with other reasons such as safety, consistency and reliability and individual variablity. Some previous studies have employed industrial robots or co-robots and showed they can more precisely stimulate the target cortical regions than traditional manual methods.

Changes of regional cerebral blood flow after repeated transcranial direct current stimulation in healthy participants: a pilot study.

Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can potentially enhance brain function and cognition in healthy individuals as well as in patients with cognitive impairment. However, neural correlates of repeated tDCS remain relatively unexplored in a healthy population.

Purpose: To assess the effects of repeated tDCS on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in healthy volunteers in a pilot investigation.

Resting-State EEG Connectivity at High-Frequency Bands and Attentional Performance Dysfunction in Stabilized Schizophrenia Patients.

: Attentional dysfunction has long been viewed as one of the fundamental underlying cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. There is an urgent need to understand its neural underpinning and develop effective treatments. In the process of attention, neural oscillation has a central role in filtering information and allocating resources to either stimulus-driven or goal-relevant objects.

Online Left-Hemispheric In-Phase Frontoparietal Theta tACS Modulates Theta-Band EEG Source-Based Large-Scale Functional Network Connectivity in Patients with Schizophrenia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Clinical Trial.

EEG studies indicated that schizophrenia patients had increased resting-state theta-band functional connectivity, which was associated with negative symptoms. We recently published the first study showing that theta (6 Hz) transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) over left prefrontal and parietal cortices during a working memory task for accentuating frontoparietal theta-band synchronization (in-phase theta-tACS) reduced negative symptoms in schizophrenia patients. Here, we hypothesized that in-phase theta-tACS can modulate theta-band large-scale networks connectivity in schizophrenia patients.

High-Frequency Transcranial Random Noise Stimulation over the Left Prefrontal Cortex Increases Resting-State EEG Frontal Alpha Asymmetry in Patients with Schizophrenia.

Reduced left-lateralized electroencephalographic (EEG) frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA), a biomarker for the imbalance of interhemispheric frontal activity and motivational disturbances, represents a neuropathological attribute of negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Unidirectional high-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation (hf-tRNS) can increase the excitability of the cortex beneath the stimulating electrode. Yet, it is unclear if hf-tRNS can modulate electroencephalographic FAA in patients with schizophrenia.

High-Frequency Transcranial Random Noise Stimulation Modulates Gamma-Band EEG Source-Based Large-Scale Functional Network Connectivity in Patients with Schizophrenia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Clinical Trial.

Schizophrenia is associated with increased resting-state large-scale functional network connectivity in the gamma frequency. High-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation (hf-tRNS) modulates gamma-band endogenous neural oscillations in healthy individuals through the application of low-amplitude electrical noises. Yet, it is unclear if hf-tRNS can modulate gamma-band functional connectivity in patients with schizophrenia.

Application of subject-specific helmets for the study of human visuomotor behavior using transcranial focused ultrasound: a pilot study.

Background And Objective: As a novel non-invasive human brain stimulation method, transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) is receiving growing attention due to its superior spatial specificity and depth penetrability. Since the focal point of tFUS needs to be fixated precisely to the target brain region during stimulation, a critical issue is to identify and maintain the accurate position and orientation of the tFUS transducer relative to the subject's head. This study aims to propose the entire framework of tFUS stimulation integrating the methods previously proposed by the authors for tFUS transducer configuration optimization and a subject-specific 3D-printed helmet, and to validate this complete setup in a human behavioral neuromodulation study.

A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Trial of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for the Treatment of Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD).

Background: Persistent postural-perceptual dizziness (PPPD) is a functional vestibular disorder that causes chronic dizziness interfering with daily activities. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has reportedly improved dizziness in patients with phobic postural vertigo in an open-label trial. However, no randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled study has been conducted on its therapeutic efficacy in PPPD.