dihydroergotoxine and Otosclerosis

After setting up a catalogue of complaints and signs for the most frequent disturbances of feeling tone of the patients suffering from cerebral arteriosclerosis, consisting of somatically subjective head pain and mental disturbances, treatment was given to 33 patients with cerebrovascular disturbances and 7 patients with similar, although non-vascular, disturbances (4 patients with presenile dementia, 3 patients with tinnitus in otosclerosis), the treatment consisting of eutergin 3 X 1 tablets to 3 X 2 tablets daily, the concomitant cardio-internistic medication remaining the same throughout the treatment course. The type and severity of the symptoms prevailing in each case were determined at the beginning, after 3 weeks and after 6 weeks of the medication with eutergin. It was found that improvement of the somatic-subjective head pain was more pronounced than that of the mental disturbances. Generally speaking, the disturbing somatic or mental signs were those which could be influenced better than the others. As far as the head pain was concerned, the feeling of giddiness, congestion in the head, rapid exhaustion, above all, tinnitus, responded best to the medication (the improvement amounting to approximately 40%), whereas of the mental complaints, a feeling of being "lost" or "abandoned" and a morose mood were most amenable to improvement (degree of improvement approximately 30%). The prevention of the delirogenic effect of antidepressives in senile depression was a remarkable effect; this means that effective antidepressive medication is made possible with the help of eutergin, EEG controls did not reveal any significant effects. There were no side effects. Elevated blood pressure levels showed a tendency to become normal without any dramatic drops. Hence, eutergin is recommended in all kinds of chronic cerebrovascular lesions, provided it is associated with concomitant cardiac and internistic treatment.

Topics: Aged; Antidepressive Agents; Cerebrovascular Disorders; Chronic Disease; Dementia; Dihydroergotoxine; Drug Combinations; Electroencephalography; Headache; Humans; Mental Disorders; Middle Aged; Neurocognitive Disorders; Otosclerosis; Papaverine; Sparteine; Tinnitus