Herpes simplex virus and Bell palsy
Article Abstract:
Infection with herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) may be responsible for the development of Bell palsy. A recent study found HSV-1 DNA in tissue samples taken from 11 of 14 patients with Bell palsy. They found no HSV-1 DNA in patients with Ramsay-Hunt syndrome, another facial nerve disorder of viral origin, nor in a control group. Treatment with acyclovir may prove to be only marginally beneficial since the drug functions by suppressing viral activity rather than repairing any viral damage already done. These findings may also lead to a change in the name of this disorder that more accurately reflects its origin. A researcher in 1972 proposed a theory about an association between HSV-1 and Bell palsy. However, previous studies were inconclusive about this association.
Publication Name: Annals of Internal Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0003-4819
Year: 1996
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Families with autosomal dominant brachydactyly type E, short stature, and severe hypertension
Article Abstract:
All patients with short fingers should have their blood pressure checked. Researchers document two families, one Canadian and one American, that were diagnosed with a genetic form of hypertension. This link was formerly described in a Turkish family. In these families, family members who have short fingers and short stature always have hypertension. Unaffected family members have neither. Many of the affected members had had a stroke. The gene involved has been mapped to chromosome 12p.
Publication Name: Annals of Internal Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0003-4819
Year: 1998
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