As part of a multidisciplinary study program, an epidemiological descriptive survey was carried out in the province of Ferrara, northern Italy. The temporal trend of Huntington chorea (HC) in the last century (1871–1987) was determined in the study area, and the patients and subjects at risk were identified with the aim of creating genetic advisory councils offering preventive interventions to eliminate the disease. The final study population consisted of 10 unrelated families with HC and 47 HC cases who lived in the province of Ferrara in the survey period.

A case is presented that illustrates the unusual concurrence of both myasthenia gravis and recurrent retrobulbar optic neuritis. The association of optic neuritis with myasthenia gravis might support the idea that there is a disorder of immune function in optic neuritis.

No abstract

A systematic study of the emotional and psychotic reactions induced by aphasia was conducted on 63 aphasic patients. ‘Indifference reaction’ was found in 19 cases and ‘depressive reaction’ in 36 cases. In 3 aphasics, we observed ‘Goldstein’s catastrophic reaction’ and in 3 other patients, a state of ‘euphoric unrestrained excitement’. Finally, in 2 aphasics ‘psychotic reaction’ was found, characterized by a state of psychomotor catatonic excitement. The hypothesis is advanced that the catatonic phenomenology of these subjects may be interpreted as ‘Bonhoeffer’s acute exogenous reaction’ with catatonic symptoms.

We prospectively studied 40 patients with uncomplicated optic neuritis (ON) to determine the risk of subsequent multiple sclerosis (MS). All patients were followed for at least 12 years. Ten patients (25%) developed MS. Seven of these 10 patients developed MS within 2 years. Both sexes were at high risk if ON occurred between the ages of 21 and 40. There was an overall increased risk of MS with recurrent ON. The course of MS appeared to be fairly benign during the period of observation.