Neurological disorders in patients who had COVID-19: how to treat during a pandemic

The article provides an overview of the world literature data on lesions of the nervous system in patients who had COVID-19. The results of our own open comparative study on the effectiveness of combined use of Xavron, Tivor-L and Xylat in patients with neurological disorders in the post-COVID period are also presented. The positive effect of the above combination of drugs on cognitive functions was demonstrated, which manifested itself in increasing the rate of mental activity, improving short-term and operative memory, increasing the stability of mental processes and reducing the levels of reactive and personal anxiety.

Diffusion Tensor Imaging Tractography for Fornix Identification in Intraventricular Tumor Surgery: A Case Series

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND The proximity of intraventricular or periventricular tumors to critical white matter structures, such as the fornix, poses an operative challenge. In order to avoid significant neurological morbidity, deliberate selection of surgical approach is necessary when planning resection of tumors in this region. We report our initial experience with fornix modeling as an adjunct to standard navigational techniques across multiple pathologies. OBJECTIVE To report the feasibility of using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) fornix modeling as an adjunct to standard navigational techniques for surgical treatment of intraventricular and periventricular tumors involving the fornix. METHODS Between July 2018 and August 2019, DTI tractography was performed on 12 patients with intraventricular or periventricular tumors involving the fornix. DTI fornix modeling was performed and included as part of the intraoperative navigation in all cases. RESULTS The patient group was composed of 6 males and 6 females. The fornix model was delineated in all cases using DTI tractography as described. The mean patient age was 45.7 yr. The 2 most-common tumor pathologies represented in our patient cohort included meningioma and cranipharyngioma, both found in 2 patients. A glioneuronal tumor, low-grade glioma, ependymoma, subependymoma, mixed germ-cell tumor, pituitary adenoma, and renal cell carcinoma metastasis were found in 1 patient each. Case examples of fornix modeling that may be incorporated into standard neuronavigation are presented. No patient experienced new or worsening post-operative memory deficits. CONCLUSION DTI tractography for fornix identification is a useful adjunct to standard navigational techniques employed in surgical resection of forniceal involving tumors.

The effect of sertraline on cognitive, psychomotor and personality-behavioural parameters in therapy of depression (clinical case)

The article presents a clinical case of the use of the antidepressant sertraline at a dose of 100 mg in a patient with a primary moderate depressive episode. At the time of treatment, the condition lasted 16 months, and symptomatology of anxiousapathic depression of endoreactive type was observed. Positive therapeutic dynamics were observed in the course of therapy with achieving clinical remission by the end of the 6th week of treatment. The reduction of anxiodepressive symptomatology was accompanied by positive dynamics of psychomotor indices with normalization of balance of excitation and inhibition processes, cognitive indices with improvement of executive functions in the form of increase of polyindependence, functional mobility of nervous processes and stress resistance, increase of productivity and stability of attention, operative memory. Significant positive changes were observed in the analysis of formal-dynamic personal characteristics: the level of psychomotor and intellectual emotionality decreased, which reflects a decrease in the intensity of emotional experience of the divergence between the expected and real results of activity, the levels of intellectual plasticity reflecting the flexibility of thinking, intellectual and communicative speed, i.e. the speed of mental processes, speech activity and verbalization increased. In the personal- emotional sphere there was an increase in frustration tolerance, balance of extrapunitive, intrapunitive and impulsive directions of reactions, increase in frequency of «obstacle-fixed» type of reaction and decrease in frequency of «self-protection» type of reaction, decrease in aggressiveness index. At the same time there were no changes in «behavioural activity types» technique: the expressed behavioural pattern of «A» type of so-called «stress-coronary» behaviour was preserved. The revealed changes indicate an increase in the adaptive capacity of the individual against the background of remitative antidepressive pharmacotherapy with sertraline.

ALGORITHM FOR DYNAMIC FORMATION OF A DIGITAL WATERMARK IN THE PROGRAM MEMORY

An algorithm for embedding digital watermarks into the memory of the executable program is proposed. Digital watermarks are used for copy protection and copyright confirmation of digital objects. The proposed approach makes it possible to form a digital watermark in the operative memory of an executable program for a limited period of time. The address of the embedded information in RAM is random, which greatly complicates its detection and identification. Extraction of digital watermark is performed by passphrase. The embedding, extraction and removal of a digital watermark is implemented using a dynamic library, which is an integral part of the user authentication process, which prevents third-party removal of the digital watermark.

History of the Wada Test

This chapter discusses the origins and development of the Wada test. Wada testing, named after Juhn A. Wada, M.D., is the technique of arterial administration of amobarbital (or other short acting barbiturate) to transiently inactivate brain function in the distribution of the injected artery during which cognitive testing is performed. The procedure was developed to establish cerebral language dominance in the late 1940s, and it became a routine component of the preoperative evaluation for epilepsy surgery in the mid-1950s. However, the use of Wada testing as the primary technique to identify cortical language regions and predict risk of post-operative memory decline has been increasingly displaced by electroencephalogram (EEG) video monitoring, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of hippocampus, positron emission tomography (PET), single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), functional MRI (fMRI), and even multi-modality imaging.

The study of the phenomenon of math anxiety in foreign psychology

The article presents an overview of foreign studies on the phenomenon of mathematical anxiety. Unlike Russian psychology, where more general concepts are considered: school anxiety, learning anxiety, exam anxiety, foreign psychologists have developed a narrow concept of “mathematical anxiety” (math anxiety) since 1960s. The article discusses the content of this concept, the main directions of the research. This analysis of the academic literature reveals the main reasons for increasing the math anxiety of students: approaches to teaching mathematics, social attitudes and stereotypes, low socioeconomic status of the family. The data show a decrease in operative memory which results in declining effectiveness of performance tasks in teaching mathematics to students with high mathematical anxiety. The article also discusses practical recommendations for reducing math anxiety while teaching mathematical disciplines to schoolchildren and students which include both pedagogical techniques and special psychological techniques and trainings

Comparative analysis of possibilities of memory of the cadets of military educational institutions

The article is devoted to the analysis of the possibilities of operative (audial and visual) memory among cadets of military educational organizations. As a result of an empirical study of the mnemonic abilities of 56 cadets of the Military University of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, it was found that the perception of information in a visual form has a greater impact on the volume and quality of the stored material than the presentation of information in an auditory form. A technique was used to present 10 words in various forms and memorize. The revealed originality of the representative mnemonic systems of operative memory of servicemen (military cadets) serves as a basis for improving the educational process, combat training and personnel management.