Ventriculoperitoneal shunt migration is contextualized alongside the broader subjects of shunt obstruction and shunt infection. These three concepts are so interlinked that discussion of either is deficient without a discussion of the other two. Despite understanding this fundamental umbrella under which shunt migration finds its place, this review is limited to shunt migration in its own right.

Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in adults. The current therapy for AD has only moderate efficacy in controlling symptoms, and it does not cure the disease. Recent studies have suggested that abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau in the brain plays a vital role in the molecular pathogenesis of AD and in neurodegeneration. This article reviews the current advances in understanding of tau protein, regulation of tau phosphorylation, and the role of its abnormal hyperphosphorylation in neurofibrillary degeneration. Furthermore, several therapeutic strategies for treating AD on the basis of the important role of tau hyperphosphorylation in the pathogenesis of the disease are described. These strategies include inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3ß (GSK-3ß), cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (cdk5), and other tau kinases; restoration of PP2A activity; and targeting tau O-GlcNAcylation. Development of drugs on the basis of these strategies is likely to lead to disease-modifying therapies for AD.

Lumbar disc herniation is a relatively rare disorder among children and adolescent population compared to adults. The objectives of this work are to study the lumbar disc herniation in pediatric population and determine the surgical outcome of lumbar microdiscectomy in such population. Patients and methods: A series of 32 pediatric patients less than 18 years operated by microdiscectomy at Mansoura University hospital during the period from January 2005 to March 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. Clinical presentation, physical signs, predisposing factors, radiological investigations and operative findings were retrieved from medical records. Improvement of pain was assessed by visual analogue scale. Results: The study included 17 females (53.1%) and 15 males (46.9%) ranging in age from 10 to18 years (mean, 14.2 year). The patients were followed up for periods ranging from three to 115 months (mean, 55 months). All patients had radicular pain (100%) with additional back pain in twenty one patients (65.63%), twenty eight patients (87.5%) presented by sciatic pain while six patients (18.75%) showed femoral neuralgia. Straight leg raising test was positive in 90.62%. L4/5 was the commonest affected level in eighteen patients (56.25%) while twelve patients (37.5%) had disc herniation at L5-S1 level and only two patients had herniation at L3-4 disc level. Family history of lumbar disc herniation in first degree relative was positive in twenty one patients (65.63%). History of relevant trauma was documented in only twelve patients (37.5%). During surgery the disc was soft, rubbery and well hydrated in 90.6% of cases. Subligamentous disc herniation was observed in 81%, while 12.5% of patients had disc bulge with intact annulus and only 6.5% had extruded disc. All patients showed significant improvement of radicular pain at the time of discharge while back pain continued to improve during early postoperative follow up. Low back pain and radicular pain equally improved after three months despite instant postoperative improvement of radicular pain. Postoperative complications were rare and included one case of wound infection, one case of iatrogenic CSF leak and new neurological deficit in another case. Conclusion: Lumbar disc herniation in pediatric population differs from that of adults in many aspects. Microdiscectomy is safe and reliable procedure for management of pediatric lumbar disc herniation with good outcome and minimal morbidity.

Cervical or thoracic OPLL results from the common pathological factors of cervical or thoracic spinal stenosis, which often cause the compression of the ventral portion of the spinal cord.

The diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD) currently relies almost exclusively on the clinical judgment of an experienced neurologist, ideally a specialist in movement disorders. However, such clinical diagnosis is often incorrect in a large percentage of patients, particularly in the early stages of the disease. A commercially available, objective and quantitative marker of nigrostriatal neurodegeneration was recently provided by 123-iodine 123I-ioflupane SPECT imaging, which is however unable to differentiate PD from a variety of other parkinsonian syndromes associated with striatal dopamine deficiency. There is evidence to support an algorithm utilizing a dual neuroimaging strategy combining 123I-ioflupane SPECT and the noradrenergic receptor ligand 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG), which assesses the post-ganglion peripheral autonomic nervous system. Evolving concepts regarding the synucleinopathy affecting the central and peripheral autonomic nervous systems as part of a multisystem disease are reviewed to sustain such strategy.