SUMMARYSpinocerebellar ataxias (SCA) are autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorders that affect the cerebellum and its connections, and have a marked clinical and genetic variability. Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) or spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3)-MJD/SCA3-is the most common SCA worldwide. MJD/SCA3 is characterized classically by progressive ataxia and variable other motor and non-motor symptoms. Sleep disorders are common, and include rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), restless legs syndrome (RLS), insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness, excessive fragmentary myoclonus and sleep apnea. This study aims to focus upon determining the presence or not of non-REM (NREM)-related parasomnias in MJD/SCA 3, using data from polysomnography (PSG) and clinical evaluation. Forty-seven patients with clinical and genetic diagnosis of MJD/SCA3 and 47 control subjects were evaluated clinically and by polysomnography. MJD/SCA3 patients had a higher frequency of arousals from slow wave sleep (P < 0.001), parasomnia complaints (confusional arousal/ sleep terrors, P = 0.001; RBD, P < 0.001; and nightmares, P < 0.001), REM sleep without atonia (P < 0.001), periodic limb movements of sleep index (PLMSi) (P < 0.001), percentage of N3 sleep (P < 0.001) and percentage of N1 sleep (P < 0.001). These data show that NREMrelated parasomnias must be included in the spectrum of sleep disorders in MJD/SCA3 patients.

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Chronic migraine is recognized as a migraine complication and is characterized by frequency of attacks up to 15 days/ month for more than three months, in absence of painkiller abusive usage. Studies indicate that magnesium ion plays a role in migraine pathophysiology but, until now, they have never included only patients with chronic migraine as their population. Objective: To compare serum magnesium levels etween treated and non-treated chronic migraineurs. Methods: Twenty-two patients with chronic migraine were selected and divided in two groups (treated and non-treated), matched by sex and age, and submitted to serum dosage of magnesium ion for latter comparison. Result: The non-treated chronic migraineurs presented serum magnesium ion level within normal limits, but lower than those found in the treated group with a statistically significant difference. Conclusion: Similarly to other studies in the literature, this study stresses the importance of magnesium ion in the migraine pathophysiology, but studying only the chronic migraine patients.