Neurology

Measurement of fluid biomarkers of neurodegeneration is an emerging approach offering improved diagnostic accuracy of neuropsychiatric conditions, particularly for atypical presentations. This article reports a case where the diagnosis of delirium with dementia was revised based on biomarker analysis, enabling treatment of a primary mood disorder with resolution of recurrent disabling psychiatric symptoms.

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), Alzheimer’s disease (AD [named after the German psychiatrist and neuropathologist, Alois Alzheimer, who first described it]), is considered as a major or mild neuro-cognitive disorder. It is estimated that about 50–70% of total dementia cases are due to this condition, while 10–20% are due to vascular dementia, and it is the fourth leading cause of death in industrialised countries.

Amyloid light-chain (AL) amyloidosis is a rare systemic disease caused by plasma cell dyscrasia. These plasma cells produce excess Ig light chains, which can misfold, aggregate, and deposit in tissues, resulting in toxicity and organ dysfunction. The heart is among the most commonly affected organs and cardiac involvement is associated with significantly worse outcomes.

While people with multiple sclerosis (MS) are not more likely to contract COVID-19, the incidences of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and COVID-19-related complications may be higher for people with MS who have comorbidities or who are taking certain disease modifying therapies (DMT).

Fox emphasised that PD is one of the fastest-growing neurological disorders. Disability and deaths related to it have more than doubled from 1990–2015. Its prevalence is expected to grow exponentially by 2040, affecting approximately 12.9 million individuals worldwide.

People with migraine, and individuals with other neurological conditions, have suffered in multiple aspects during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper will discuss the factors that impacted the neurology department.

NDM includes a group of rare hereditary neuromuscular disorders caused by mutations in the genes that encode sodium or chloride muscle channels.1 Myotonia is the hallmark symptom of NDM and presents as muscle stiffness, often associated with pain, fatigue, and weakness, which can limit function.

Adult-onset idiopathic focal dystonia is the most common type of primary dystonia, and adult-onset idiopathic cervical dystonia (AOICD) is its most prevalent phenotype.