Ricerc@Sapienza

Unilateral spatial neglect (USN) is a frequent consequence of acquired brain injury, especially following right hemisphere damage. Traditionally, unilateral spatial neglect is assessed with cancellation tests such as the Bells test. Recently, a new cancellation test, the Apples test, has been proposed. The present study aims at comparing the accuracy of these two tests in detecting hemispatial neglect, on a sample of 56 right hemisphere stroke patients with a diagnosis of USN.

The downregulation of uncoupling protein-2 (UCP2) is associated with increased brain and kidney injury in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP) fed with a Japanese style hypersodic diet (JD). Systemic overexpression of UCP2 reduces organ damage in JD-fed SHRSP. We examined the effect of brain-specific UCP2 overexpression on blood pressure (BP), stroke occurrence and kidney damage in JD-fed SHRSP. Rats received a single i.c.v. injection of a lentiviral vector encoding UCP2 (LV-UCP2), or an empty vector.

Background and aims: Vascular disease (VD), as assessed by history of myocardial infarction or peripheral artery disease or aortic plaque, increases stroke risk in atrial fibrillation (AF), and is a component of risk assessment using the CHA2DS2-VASc score. We investigated if systemic atherosclerosis as detected by ultrasound carotid plaque (CP) could improve the predictive value of the CHA2DS2-VASC score. Methods: We analysed data from the ARAPACIS study, an observational study including 2027 Ialian patents with non-valvular AF, in whom CP was detected using Doppler Ultrasonography.

To assess the level of the electromagnetic quantities towhich a cerebral lesion is exposed during a treatment, a model of thelesion inside a human head is needed. One possibility is to use a specificmodel, where both lesion and head are taken from MRI images of thepatient under treatment. This approach allows to have very detailed in-formation, but it’s difficult and time consuming; as an opposite, anothermethod considers completely generic models, where any degree of patientdetail is lost. In this study, a novel in-between approach is presented,where a semi-specific model is built.

Neuroprotective effects of pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) have been demonstrated both in vivo and in vitro. Moreover, preliminary clinical studies have been conducted and suggested PEMFs as a possible alternative therapy to treat acute ischemic stroke. In this work, we show that it’s possible to build-up a patient semi-specific head model, where the 3D reconstruction of the ischemic lesion of the patient under treatment is inserted in the head of the human body model “Duke” (v.1.0, Zurich MedTech AG).

Balance impairment is a major mechanism behind falling along with environmental hazards. Under physiological conditions, ageing leads to a progressive decline in balance control per se. Moreover, various neurological disorders further increase the risk of falls by deteriorating specific nervous system functions contributing to balance. Over the last 15 years, significant advancements in technology have provided wearable solutions for balance evaluation and the management of postural instability in patients with neurological disorders.

Fabry disease (FD) is a rare, X-linked, lysosomal storage disorder caused by a deficiency in ?-galactosidase A (?-GAL A) enzyme, encoded by the GLA gene and is an underdiagnosed cause of stroke in young adults . Ischemic stroke in young people is often cryptogenic. In FD stroke can be the first manifestation. An early diagnosis of FD allows an early treatment that is important in preventing cerebrovascular events and multi-organ involvement.

Motifs are small recurring meso-scale structures characterizing real networks. Studies in literature investigated network motifs focusing only on their frequency spectrum. In the present work, we propose to study functional brain networks by means of motifs analysis, going beyond the identification of brain network-characterizing motifs. Indeed, we defined and implemented new indices based on motifs analysis and we applied this approach to better understand the architecture of brain networks after stroke.

Objectives: This study sought to evaluate 30-day safety and efficacy of dual-layer mesh-covered carotid stent systems for carotid artery stenting (CAS) in the clinical practice. Background: When compared with carotid endarterectomy, CAS has been associated with a higher rate of post procedural neurologic events; these could be related to plaque's debris prolapsing through stent's mesh. Consequently, the need for increased plaque coverage has resulted in the development of dual-layer mesh-covered carotid stent systems.

Objectives: This study sought to evaluate 1-year safety and efficacy of dual-layered mesh-covered carotid stent systems (DLS) for carotid artery stenting (CAS). Background: Small clinical studies evaluating 1-year outcomes of CAS performed with 2 available DLS, Roadsaver (RS) (Terumo Corp., Tokyo, Japan) and CGuard (CG) (InspireMD, Boston, Massachusetts), have been published. Methods: The authors performed an individual patient–level meta-analysis including studies enrolling more than 100 CAS with DLS.