All of the bilaterally enucleated subjects (n=12) exhibited free

All of the bilaterally enucleated subjects (n=12) exhibited free running rhythms with periods ranging from 24.13 to 24.81 h. Although abnormal timing of hormonal patterns can confirm the presence of a circadian rhythm disorder, patients complain about the resultant circadian rhythm sleep disorder, and disturbed sleep is the most commonly reported symptom associated with misaligned circadian rhythms (Figure 3). and (Figure 4).62,67 Irregularities of sleep and its timing were previously related to an Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical abnormal phase of the rectal temperature

rhythm37,38 and in 1990, Martens et al reported that 71% of NPL subjects (n=16) complained of a chronic sleep disorder associated with increased sleep episodes

and increased Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical daytime sleep.68 We have extended these findings and showed that sleep depends on clrcadlan phase,69 even under real-world conditions.62 In entrained subjects, the timing of sleep was highly correlated with the timing of the aMT6s rhythm such that subjects with advanced aMT6s rhythms had a relatively earlier sleep time Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical and subjects with delayed aMT6s rhythms had a later sleep time (Figure 4),62 In ”free-running“ subjects, a more complicated pattern emerges where sleep exhibits a non-24-hour pattern that cycles in and out of synchrony with the 24-hour social day on which most subjects try to live (Figure 3B). Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical The episode of poor sleep is characterized by short duration night-time sleep and a high propensity for daytime naps the timing of which coincides with the aMT6s peak as the clrcadlan system drives sleepiness during the biological (but not social) night.62,70 The cyclic

sleep-wake pattern, formally termed “non-24-hour sleepwake disorder,”50 Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical persists ad Infinitum and can be extremely table 1 disruptive and debilitating, especially In Individuals with periods very close to 24 hours, when sleep can remain misaligned from the clrcadlan cycle for many months. Figure 3. Circadian rhythms of sleep and melatonin in two blind subjects. The left-hand panels show subjective sleep times (■) over 4 to 5 weeks, double-plotted according to time of day AV-951 (abscissa) and study day (ordinate). Subjects also collected sequential … Figure 4. Relationship between sleep timing and circadian phase in entrained blind subjects. Panel A shows subjective sleep (■) and urinary 6-sulphatoxymelatonin rhythm (○) timing over 4 weeks (study day on ordinate axis, clock time on abscissa) … In addition to affecting sleep, circadian rhythm disorders also Impact waking function. In addition to the high propensity for naps during the day,70 subjects also rate themselves more sleepy and more miserable and perform worst when they are awake at an adverse circadian phase.

36 Role of stress responsivity in the acquisition and persistence

36 Role of stress responsivity in the acquisition and persistence of specific addicitive diseases, and the impact of chronic exposure to drugs

of abuse and withdrawal therefrom on components of the stress-responsive system, along with identification of potential new targets for therapeutic intervention In our recent Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical studies, we have also further explored the relative role of dopamine D1 and dopamine D2 receptors in various specific neurobiological changes, or neural plasticity, resulting from chronic exposure to cocaine. Since it has been well established that dopamine plays a major role in the rewarding properties of cocaine, and since it has been Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical established for a long time that one of cocaine’s prlmary sites of action is the presynaptic reuptake transporter for dopamine, where cocaine, by blocking reuptake, effects a flooding of perlsynaptlc space with dopamine, we have tried to dissect out the relative role of dopamine D1-like versus dopamine D2-like receptors in some of the resultant changes, both in behaviors, but also in gene expression and neuropeptide levels. During the last 5 years, we have Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical completed further studies of the

effects of selective dopamine D1-like and also dopamine D2-like receptor antagonists during acute binge-pattern cocaine administration on corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) mRNA levels and pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) mRNA levels in the hypothalamus. In earlier studies, we have found that both dopamine D1-like and also dopamine D2-like antagonists attenuate

the chronic binge-pattern cocaine-induced increase in adrenocorticotropin Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical hormone (ACTH) and corticosterone levels.37 Further, we have shown that an attenuation Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical of cocalne-induced changes in stress hormone levels similarly occurs in animals with complete deletion of the DARPP-32 protein, which is involved directly in dopamine D1 receptor signal transduction.38 in our recent studies, we again found that both dopamine D1-like and dopamine D2-like antagonists attenuated the elevation of corticosterone levels by acute, as well as in our earlier studies of chronic, binge-pattern cocaine.39 The Carfilzomib previously identified acute binge cocaine-induced increases in hypothalamic CRF mRNA levels were not found in rats pretreated either with a dopamine D1-like or D2-llke antagonist. Further, we found that neither the dopamine D1-like or dopamine D2-like receptor antagonists alone, in the absence of cocaine, altered mRNA levels of CRF in the hypothalamus. Thus, these results further ROCK1 support our earlier concept, that both dopamine D1 receptors and dopamine D2 receptors mediate acute as well as chronic cocaine’s stimulatory effects on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.

1) 1 104 of the patients (21%) were assigned the code A10 – Ches

1). 1 104 of the patients (21%) were assigned the code A10 – Chest pain according to the Index, corresponding to a rate of 5.4 (95% CI 5.3-5.6) chest pain cases reported to the EMCCs per 1000 inhabitants per year. Further analyses are based on the 1 104 patients with code A10 – Chest pain. selleck Ganetespib Figure 1 Flow chart of AMIS forms received for registration, with both excluded and included incidents. The patients’ age ranged from 4 to 97 years (median (25th-75th percentile): 65 (53-79)), 56% males with a median age of 61 (25th-75th percentile: 52-75), and 44% females Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical with

median age 70 (25th-75th percentile: 56-82). The males were significantly younger than the females (p < 0.0001), and males dominated the age group 30-69 years with 63%, while the females constituted the majority (54%) in the age group > 70 years (Figure ​(Figure2).2). There were only minor differences in the distribution of patients

around-the-clock. Figure 2 Study patients with acute chest pain, by age and sellckchem gender. The primary care doctor on-call Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical was alerted by radio alarm in 351 (36%) of the cases, of which the doctor responded with an emergency call out in about a third. The doctors’ Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical responses and choices of action are shown in Table ​Table1.1. In 417 (38%) of the medical emergencies with chest pain as the main symptom, the caller to the EMCC was a next-of-kin, in 173 (16%) the patient, and a layperson made the call in 61 (6%). A physician called directly to the EMCC for assistance in 108 (11%) of the cases, while the call came from other health personnel in 314 (29%) of the cases. Table 1 Alerting of doctors with their response, prehospital response time, air ambulance Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical involvement and to where the patients were brought by NACA-score Median prehospital response Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical time

was 13 minutes (95% CI 9-20), and over 90% of the patients were reached by an ambulance in less than 30 minutes. Figure ​Figure33 shows the number of patients reached per minute (Figure ​(Figure3a)3a) and cumulative by percentage (Figure ​(Figure3b3b). Figure 3 Prehospital response time, defined as the time period from the caller calls the emergency number 113 until the nearest available ambulance resource reaches the patient. a. Number of patients reached per minute b. Number of patients reached, Carfilzomib cumulative … NACA-score could be classified in 971 (88%) of the patients (table ​(table1),1), with 87 (9%) given NACA-score 0 or 1, indicating no illness or an illness not requiring medical attention. Overall, the female patients were given lower NACA-scores than the male patients, indicating less severe symptoms (p < 0.001), and in the group NACA 1, females constituted 59% of the patients (p < 0.01). Males dominated among the patients given NACA 4-6 (67% of the 163 patients, p < 0.001). Among the 10 patients who were dead, nine were male (p < 0.05). Figure ​Figure44 shows severity of illness (NACA-scores) in study patients, by gender.

She was trained in the PRISMA method In a previous paper, we exa

She was trained in the PRISMA method. In a previous paper, we examined the inter-rater reliability of formulating root causes in causal trees and classifying the root causes with the ECM.[27] The reliability analyses were performed with a sample of event reports from a larger database of events than used for the current study. Next to the current ED-reports, this database also contained reports from surgery and Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical internal medicine departments. The agreement in formulating root causes of unintended events, expressed as a mean score between 0 and 3, was good (2.0). The inter-rater reliability for the

number of root causes used in the causal tree, was moderate (κ = 0.45). The inter-rater reliability of classifying root causes with the ECM taxonomy was substantial at main category

level (κ = 0.70) and subcategory level (complete taxonomy) (κ = 0.63). Statistical analysis The data of the reports were first summarised using descriptive Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical statistics and frequency tables. All analyses were performed with 522 cases (N = 522 unintended events), except for the analysis of the relative frequencies of causes per event type. The frequencies per event type were calculated using the 845 root causes as cases (N = 845 Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical root causes), because we wanted the percentages in the bars to sum up to 100% to increase Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical the comprehensibility of the figure. SPSS 14.0 was used to perform the statistical analyses. Results Characteristics of reported unintended events The total number of events reported was 522, www.selleckchem.com/products/Imatinib(STI571).html ranging from 46 to 71 per ED, with an http://www.selleckchem.com/products/azd9291.html average of 52 reports (SD = 7.6). In total, there were 743 reporting days during which 189 different

employees Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical reported one or more unintended events. Most reports were made by nurses (85%). Resident physicians or consultants reported 13% of the unintended events and clerical staff reported 2%. In 83% of the unintended events, the reporter was directly involved in the event. In Table ​Table2,2, a number of clinical characteristics of Brefeldin_A the unintended events are listed. Most events (44%) were known to have occurred during daytime hours and 34% during evening and night. For 22% of the unintended events, the reporter did not specify or know at what time the event occurred. The phase in ED care in which most events occurred was medical examinations/tests (36%). More than half of the unintended events (56%) had consequences for the patient. In 45% of these events with consequences for patients, the patient suffered some inconvenience, for example prolonged waiting time. In 30% the patient received suboptimal care, for example a delay in starting antibiotics treatment. For smaller groups of patients the outcomes were more severe, e.g. extra intervention (8%), pain (6%), physical injury (3%).

Clinical findings of sarcomere HCM are indistinguishable from tho

Clinical findings of sarcomere HCM are indistinguishable from those of Z-band HCM, and these two types of HCM show indistinguishable histopathologic features such as myocyte and myofibrillar disarrays, myocyte hypertrophy, and interstitial fibrosis. Table 1 Genetic diversity of idiopathic cardiomyopathy (ICM). There is another HCM-like disease, “glycogen-storage

HCM”, caused by mutations affecting mitochondrial and lysosomal function, including the mutations Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical in the genes for γ-2-regulatory subunit of the AMP-activated protein kinase (PRKAG2), lysosome-associated membrane 2 (LAMP2), α-1,4-glycosidase (GAA) and α-galactosidase A (GLA) (5, 9). Among them, LAMP2, GAA, and GLA mutations were identified in the patients with Danon’s disease, Pompe disease, and Fabry’s disease, respectively. They were known as glycogen-storage metabolic disorders and affected not only cardiac Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical muscle but also other organs (selleckchem skeletal muscle in Danon’s disease, skeletal muscle and liver in Pompe disease, and skin, eye and kidney in Fabry’s disease). However, clinical examinations revealed that these diseases sometimes predominantly affecting the heart, usually manifested with massive LV hypertrophy and electrophysiologic abnormalities. Intracellular vacuoles containing glycogen

could be found in the hypertrophied hearts with these metabolic gene Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical mutations and the pathological features of sarcomere/Z-band HCM, such as myofibrillar disarrays, were usually Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical absent in the glycogen-strage HCM. In addition, the patients carrying LAMP2, GAA, and GLA mutations have family histories of the disease, which is consistent with autosomal recessive (LAMP2 and GAA mutations) or X-linked (GLA mutation) inheritance,

suggesting that deficiency of these enzymes are the direct cause of glycogen-storage HCM. As for the functional alteration due to the genetic abnormalities, Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical it was reported that the MYH7 mutations, Arg403Gln or Leu908Val, affected the actin-myosin interaction (10), providing a hypothesis that the cardiac hypertrophy in HCM was compensation for decreased cardiac contraction due to the sarcomere abnormality. However, further functional analyses of HCM-associated mutations indicated that a common functional alteration caused by the mutations in various sarcomere genes is the increased Ca2+-sensitivity of muscle contraction, i.e., leftward shift of the pCa-tension relationship curve (11). The increased Ca2+-sensitivity implies that the cardiac muscle carrying the mutation can generate Dacomitinib force at a relatively low Ca2+-concentration where normal muscle should be relaxed, and this can well explain the diastolic dyshttp://www.selleckchem.com/products/CP-690550.html function of the HCM heart, which is characteristic to HCM. In contrast to sarcomere HCM, the molecular mechanisms underlying the Z-band HCM have not been fully elucidated. However, we previously identified that the HCM-associated TTN mutation Ser3799Tyr increased the binding ability to α-actinin by 40% (12).

Data Collection and Processing Data was recorded prospectively as

Data Collection and Processing Data was recorded prospectively as part of the new structured sedation protocol on standardised datasheets which were then entered into a relational database. The duration of the ABD was taken from the

security log. All outcomes were defined prior to the introduction of the sedation protocol. Identical data items were extracted retrospectively from the medical records of patients in the historical control group. The extraction process was undertaken by one investigator (LAC) but was reviewed by a second investigator (GKI) for the first ten patients. There were Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical no differences in the recording of the outcomes between the two investigators. Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical The following data were included for the study analysis: patient demographic characteristics (age, sex), cause of ABD, duration of the ABD episode, any use of additional sedation in the patient including the time of administration, drug related adverse effects and injuries to patients and staff. Methods of Measurement Information

was recorded by an investigator or research nurse for a six hour period after initial sedation. Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical For historical controls the medical record was used to obtain information from the standard ED observation chart. For all patients including historical controls, the duration of the ABD was extracted from the security log based on the time from the initial Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical call time to security to the “all clear” time when they are released from attendance. The security staff defined an “all clear” when the patient is safely selleck compound secured by all four limbs, a mask is in situ if the patient is spitting, the patient is sedated or settling and the verbal abuse is abating or ceased. This is determined in consultation with the clinical staff present at the time. The security staff and ED clinical staff were not aware that the duration of ABD was the primary outcome for the study. During the new sedation protocol,

additional medications used and adverse events were recorded prospectively Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical and checked with the patient’s medication chart and medical record. For historical controls this information was extracted from the medication chart and medical record. The data for the historical controls and patients in the intervention period were the same because it is mandatory routine patient documentation. Main Interventions The intervention was the Batimastat introduction of a structured IM sedation protocol for ABD patients in the ED that involved initial sedation via the IM route with pre-determined medications [droperidol (10 mg), selleck inhibitor midazolam (10 mg) or a combination of droperidol (5 mg) and midazolam (5 mg)]. Prior to the study the use of sedation, including the drug type used and the route of administration was dictated by either the treating ED doctor or the consultant emergency physician or clinical toxicologist responsible for the patient.

13) Moreover, a recent study revealed that absence of LV function

13) Moreover, a recent study revealed that absence of LV function recovery within 1 week (EF < 50%) was an independent factor associated with mortality.14) An awareness of LVOT obstruction is an important factor in understanding hemodynamics in stress-induced cardiomyopathy. Basal hypercontractility is one of the characteristics, and can be aggravated

with the use of inotropic agents such Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical as dobutamine and dopamine. The Venturi effect around the LVOT results in the movement of the anterior mitral leaflets toward the interventricular septum in the Ponatinib dna systolic phase ["systolic anterior motion" (SAM)]. The reduction in forward flow contributes to the resultant low cardiac output. This effect may occur in up to one-quarter of patients presenting with a septal bulge associated with SAM and mitral regurgitation (MR).15) Other reports have confirmed structural abnormalities associated with LVOT obstruction, Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical such as mid-ventricular septal thickening (particularly in elderly women).16) LVOT obstruction is a dynamic phenomenon depending on the hemodynamics at that time point,

and thus echocardiography Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical is a useful and readily accessible tool if unexplained hypotension or shock is observed. Apical five-chamber and parasternal long-axis views in two-dimensional (2D) images with color Doppler Ganetespib order guidance can help in the evaluation of SAM severity. In the parasternal long-axis view, the M mode at the level of the mitral

valve may give information about the relationship between the interventricular septum and anterior Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical mitral leaflet. MR can be observed with or without SAM.17),18) SAM can occur concomitantly with MR due to hemodynamic alteration, whereas the mechanism of MR without SAM may be different. The main factor involved in MR without Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical SAM seems to relate to displacement of the papillary muscle, which leads to impaired leaflet coaptation secondary to tethering (Fig. 2). One study showed that patients with significant (moderate-to-severe or severe) acute MR had more depressed LVEF and a less complete and slower recovery of LV function.17) These findings imply Carfilzomib that acute MR should be considered to be a potential marker of an adverse clinical course requiring aggressive treatment. Fig. 2 Moderate mitral regurgitation detected by parasternal long axis view (A) and apical four chamber view (B). Atypical forms of stress-induced cardiomyopathy have increasingly been reported. Transient mid-ventricular ballooning with preserved basal and apical contractility (inverted takotsubo cardiomyopathy) (Fig. 3) has been described.9),19) The morphology of RWMA can be quite different, varying from a small area of akinesis limited to the LV apex to a large area of LV akinesis.20) Rare (but serious) complications such as LV free wall rupture and consequent death can occur in a manner similar to that seen in patients with MI.21) Fig.

105,106 Neurogenesis in adult, mammalian brain has been so far de

105,106 Neurogenesis in adult, mammalian brain has been so far described in three areas: the sub ventricular zone, hippocampal dentate gyrus, and olfactory bulb, although there are reports that it may

also occur in cerebral cortex and hypothalamus. It has been estimated that in rodent brain approximately 250 000 new neurons, and about 6% of the granule cell layer, are formed each month.107 However, in primates this number seems to be much smaller, and it is still debated whether this lower rate of neurogenesis is clinically significant, #merely keyword# in pathology and in the action of psychotropics. A number of magnetic resonance imaging studies have clearly shown that hippocampal volume

may be reduced in depressed patients and that Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical this correlates with recurrence and length of depressive episodes.108 Although it has been suggested that reduced neurogenesis might, be a contributing factor, there is at present no clear evidence supporting this hypothesis. On the contrary the available evidence suggests reduction of neuropil and loss of glial cells as main factors in the shrinking of hippocampus in depression.109 However, compelling evidence from preclinical studies showed that different paradigms of stress reduce hippocampal Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical neurogenesis, while antidepressant Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical treatments and interventions that have antidepressant properties, such as physical exercise or environmental enrichment, increase neurogenesis

(reviewed in ref 108). To date, the most convincing evidence for a role of neurogenesis in the mechanism of figure 1 antidepressants was offered by a study in which the knockout of 5-HT1A receptor, or restricted irradiation of the subgranular zone, suppressed neurogenesis and at the same time the behavioral effects of Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical fluoxetine and imipramine in mice.110 Two later studies supported the same conclusion. Studies in which adult hippocampal neurogenesis was blocked did not show increased anxiety -related behavior or increased susceptibility to the effects of chronic stress, as assayed in preclinical sceens (reviewed in ref 111). For this reason, based on the available evidence, it Batimastat is likely that, neurogenesis in the hippocampus is probably not a major contributor to the etiology of depression, although it. may be required for the behavioral effects of antidepressants. Future imaging studies allowing to visualize hippocampal neurogenesis are warranted to understand the role of adult, neurogenesis. Future directions: new targets for antidepressants As summarized in Figure I, all the available antidepressants are based on acute mechanisms affecting monoaminergic transmission.

In general, almost half of the discussed

In general, almost half of the discussed barriers were considered external to the provider (e.g., systems issues, patient delays). The barriers internal to the provider were prioritized according to a model of physician behavior change[9]. The hospital barrier assessment process was important because although the top barriers were similar across #for keyword# sites, there was still inter-site variability. This stresses the need for interventions targeted to individual

hospital and provider barriers. The optimal and efficient design of interventions to improve health processes requires a firm understanding of the knowledge and attitudes of the group targeted for the intervention[17]. This is analogous to establishing understanding of the pathophysiology and course of disease prior to the development of a treatment. Past work on barriers to thrombolysis has focused on patient- or hospital-level characteristics and not provider-level barriers[4,6]. Our focus centered on the knowledge and attitudes of the providers at the bedside who were deciding Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical whether and how to offer thrombolysis to stroke patients. Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical Providers were cognizant of the importance

of delayed presentation and the difficulties inherent in patient and family symptom recognition and often reported these as important barriers. Further work on the exploration of the interaction between the physician offering therapy and the patient or family member deciding on receiving therapy could provide additional insights into improving treatment rates. The finding that Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical EPs frequently cited lack of motivation to adhere to, and lack of familiarity with, the content of guidelines for stroke thrombolysis is intuitive. An example of this is the observation that physicians will repeatedly examine patients looking for improvement to justify withholding treatment. Prior and current ongoing methods of examining thrombolytic utilization and Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical Ponatinib buy eligibility have not captured this. Designing interventions that recognize treatment should occur promptly to combat this hesitancy is important, particularly since providers may delay

even further with the recent publication of data that potentially expands the time window for thrombolysis[18,19]. The lack of familiarity with the guidelines cited as Entinostat a barrier by many respondents often focused on specific procedural issues such as blood pressure control. Difficulty with these and other aspects of the post-treatment guidelines have been observed in prior cohorts of thrombolytic treated stroke patients, although prior investigations focusing on clinician failure to treat patients meeting criteria have been limited[20]. The qualitative methodology utilized in the current investigation was crucial to identifying these important issues and others that have not been captured by prior reviews of thrombolytic cases or EP surveys.

76 This finding- in addition to others with cross-reacting antibo

76 This finding- in addition to others with cross-reacting antibodies – shows that a poststreptococcal autoimmune process is involved in TS. This is

the basis for the successful application of immune-modulating therapeutic approaches in TS and PANDAS.72 Different types of infectious agents and different stages of infection- eg, acute streptococcal infection77 and poststreptococcal inflammation,75 were reported to be associated with TS. The therapy, however, has to take into consideration different therapeutic strategies for acute or chronic infection, or for a postinfectious autoimmune process. Therefore – although there are continuous transitions between these AGI-6780? inflammatory states – research Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical should focus on the differentiation and differential therapies

of these stages of inflammation. Anti-inflammatory therapy in TS, eg, use of a COX-2 inhibitor, has also shown positive effects.65 Altogether, the involvement of inflammatory Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical immunological mechanisms in the pathogenesis of TS, at least in a subgroup of patients, is obvious. A multifactorial pathogenesis has been proposed, with the involvement of an (immuno)genetic predisposition and environmental factors such as infection or postinfectious selleck chemicals llc phenomena. Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical Further research also has to identify markers for the differentiation of inflammationmediated and other forms of TS. Recent findings from T2-weighted MRI in patients with TS, but also other syndromes (OCD and ADHD, which show a high prevalence of comorbidity with TS) revealed a significantly higher frequency of cortical and subcortical hyperintensities compared with controls, a finding which is in accordance with an inflammatory process in certain cases of TS.37 Shortcomings Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical of the PANDAS concept The

PANDAS concept, however, is limited by several shortcomings. Although this disorder is associated with streptococcal infection, no test for streptococci to support the infection, is required for the diagnosis. An objective parameter supporting the clinical diagnosis Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical (eg, increased antistreptococcal titers) would help to confirm the diagnosis. Moreover, different stages of streptococcal infection might Anacetrapib lead to different therapeutic consequences. Although acute and chronic infection with streptococci require antibiotic treatment, a poststreptococcal autoimmune process may respond better to immunomodulatory therapy. A further difficulty for the PANDAS diagnosis might be the heterogeneity of the symptoms, which include not only motor and vocal tics, but also OC symptoms, which often, but not necessarily, co-occur in one child. The restriction of the PANDAS concept to children/adolescents, however, is a further point for discussion. Tics and OC symptoms also often occur in adults. Accordingly, an association between tics and infectious agents in adults has been reported.