Laurent Vercueil

Background: Bilateral pallidal deep brain stimulation ( GPi ‐ DBS ) is effective for dystonia. Long‐term evolution of therapeutic benefit and emergence of parkinsonism have not been systematically characterized. Objectives: To assess 15‐year dystonia outcomes and characterize parkinsonism after bilateral GPi ‐ DBS . Methods: Dystonia severity and disability were evaluated at baseline,1, 3, and 15 years postoperatively with the Burke–Fahn–Marsden Dystonia Rating Scale (BFMDRS). Parkinsonism was assessed at last visit using the Movement Disorder Society‐Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale‐Part III and freezing of gait (FoG) questionnaire. Results: Of 17 patients reassessed at 15 years, 41% maintained clinical benefit. Parkinsonism was observed in 94%, predominantly axial, with self‐reported FoG in 67%. Higher baseline BFMDRS‐Motor scores predicted last follow‐up axial parkinsonism ( R = 0.800, P < 0.001). Conclusions: Over 15 years, interindividual therapeutic benefit diverged while axial parkinsonism emerged in nearly all patients. These findings highlight the need for systematic long‐term monitoring extending beyond dystonia control after GPi‐DBS. © 2026 The Author(s). Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

Objective: To characterize electroencephalographic (EEG) profiles of short spike‐and‐wave bursts (SWBs) in patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsy reporting sensations of fleeting/almost loss of consciousness, described as “a blip on the screen”—a phenomenon first termed “blips” by J.W. Lance. Methods: Among 176 consecutive patients, 19 were included based on a diagnosis of idiopathic generalized epilepsy and the presence of SWBs on EEG recordings. Patients were classified as “blippers” (yes) or “non‐blippers” (no) based on their response to whether they had ever experienced “blip”‐like sensations. A total of 624 SWBs extracted from EEG traces were compared between groups. The analysis focused on the spike (10–125 Hz) and wave (2.5–4 Hz) frequency band components across predefined spatial regions of interests. Results: SWBs were significantly longer in blippers than in non‐blippers (median: 1.2 s, interquartile range [IQR]: (Q1–Q3): 753–1796 vs 0.9 s, 599–1541; p < .001, r = .14). EEG analyses revealed two distinct spatial profiles, with higher fractional change in wave amplitude over anterior frontal (39.73, 12.56–81.27 vs 17.34, 5.18–56.95; p < .01, r = .13), frontal (46.94, 20.55–100.28 vs 31.08, 9.51–88.81; p < .05, r = .10), and occipital (25.25, 11.51–50.97 vs 14.99, 4.94–43.80; p < .01, r = .13) regions, but not parietal ( p > .05). Similarly, spikes showed increased amplitude in anterior frontal (5.32, 2.50–15.27 vs 4.20, 2.58–7.60; p < .05, r = .09) and central (3.95, 2.81–6.20 vs 3.07, 1.82–5.08; p < .01, r = .14) regions, with lower occipital power in blippers (1.93, 1.36–3.19 vs 2.53, 1.52–4.33; p < .05, r = −.10). Overall, spike and wave amplitudes were higher in blippers, particularly at SWB onset. All p ‐values were false discover rate (FDR)–corrected and analyses were conducted at the SWB level. Significance: Distinct EEG profiles of SWBs may be associated with self‐reported blip experiences.

Objective: Attention impairments are common in children with epilepsy and widely impact their quality of life. Interictal epileptiform discharges (IED) may induce subtle dysfunctions of various cognitive processes, but data regarding the impact of IED on attention remain limited. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the impact of IED on continuous undivided attention in children with epilepsy, controlling for the number of treatments, type of epilepsy, frequency of seizures in the last year, age at onset, and comorbid attention disorder. Methods: Using a computerized attention test synchronized with the electroencephalogram (EEG) in 119 children with diverse epilepsy syndromes, behavioral (reaction time [RT], errors, attention stability over time) and electrophysiological measures related to attentional engagement (event-related potential [ERP] in parietal electrodes) were collected. The cumulative impact of IED was evaluated using multivariate models controlling for epilepsy-related factors. The transient impact of IED was assessed by comparing responses in trials with and without IED. Results: IED induced attention fluctuations independently from other epilepsy-related factors. In terms of cumulative impact, a higher quantity of IED was associated with a poorer attentional performance over the entire task. In terms of transient impact, trials disrupted by IED were characterized by longer RT and a lower amplitude of the parietal ERP, extending over a long-time window that included attentional processing (P300). Significance: These results highlight the deleterious effect of IED on attention, at both behavioral and electrophysiological levels, independently of other epilepsy-related features. This work provides evidence that IED induce subtle attentional deficits and could be considered as biomarkers of abnormal brain function. Key points: A higher quantity of IED was associated with poorer attentional performance, irrespective of other epilepsy-related features. IED promote transient cognitive impairment: trials with IED are characterized by increased RTs and a lower amplitude of the parietal ERP. EEG-synchronized attentional tasks are needed to assess subtle deficits in patients with epilepsy.

Irritable bowel syndrome [IBS] is classified as a disorder of gut‐brain interaction related to stress with no curative option. Heart rate variability biofeedback [HRV‐BFB] is a non‐drug therapy recently suggested to be relevant in reducing both autonomic nervous system [ANS] dysregulations and psychiatric comorbidities. Nevertheless, empirical evidence is still scarce and only a few studies have tested HRV‐BFB in adults with IBS. Our aims were therefore to examine the effectiveness of HRV‐BFB training on the psychophysiological states of 29 adults with IBS. The study took place in three sessions, spaced 24 days apart. In all sessions, participants completed self‐report questionnaires to assess their psychological state (affectivity, anxiety, depression, perceived stress, coping strategy, life satisfaction, illness cognitions), ANS measurements were then recorded of them at rest, during completion of a mental task (reactivity), and while in recovery following this task. The first 24‐day period was a control period without any practice, and the second was an intervention period with HRV‐BFB. Participants practiced HRV‐BFB daily for 5 min, three times a day, for 24 days. We found that HRV‐BFB reduced psychological distress and the feeling of helplessness, and led to a decrease in sympathetic reactivity during the mental task. Our findings support the potential relevance of HRV‐BFB to manage mental health in adults with IBS.

Background: Visual perception relies on predictive processes driven by low spatialfrequencies that convey coarse information prior to fine information conveyed by highfrequencies. Autistic individuals, however, favor local and fine information, conveyed by highspatial frequencies. This suggests that atypical predictive processes from low spatial frequenciesmay contribute to facial processing difficulties in autism. Nonetheless, since autistic femalesoften present better socio-communicational abilities than males, we hypothesized that a moretypical coarse-to-fine processing should be seen in autistic females than males for socioemotionalstimuli. Method: To test this hypothesis, we asked adult participants (44 autistic, 51non-autistic) to detect fearful faces among neutral faces, filtered in two orders: from coarse tofine (CtF) and from fine to coarse (FtC). Results: Results show lower d’ values and longerreaction times for fearful detection in autism compared to non-autistic individuals, irrespective ofthe filtering order. Both groups presented shorter P100 latency after CtF compared to FtC, andfaster and larger amplitude for N170 after FtC compared to CtF. Nevertheless, autisticparticipants presented reduced differences between CtF and FtC in the fusiform, which was morespatially spread in autistic females compared to NA females. This suggests reduced spatialfrequency differentiation in autism. Finally, females had faster P100 and N170, and largeroccipital activation for FtC sequences than males, regardless of the group. Conclusions: Theresults do not suggest impaired predictive processes from LSF in autism despite behavioraldifferences in fear detection. Nonetheless, they indicate sex differences that need to be considered.