Seal finger, also known as sealers finger and spekkfinger (from the Norwegian for "blubber"), is an infection that afflicts the fingers of seal hunters and other people who handle seals, as a result of bites or contact with exposed seal bones; it has also been contracted by exposure to untreated seal pelts. The State of Alaska Section of Epidemiology defines it as "a finger infection associated with bites, cuts, or scratches contaminated by the mouths, blood, or blubber of certain marine mammals".It can cause cellulitis, joint inflammation, and swelling of the bone marrow; untreated, the course of "seal finger" is slow and results often in thickened contracted joint. Historically, seal finger was treated by amputation of the affected digits once they became unusable. It was first described scientifically in 1907.The precise nature of the organism responsible for seal finger is unknown, as it has resisted culturing because most cases are promptly treated with antibiotics; however, as seal finger can be treated with tetracycline or similar antibiotics, the causative organism is most likely bacterial, or possibly fungal; in 1998, Baker, Ruoff, and Madoff showed that the organism is most likely a species of Mycoplasma called Mycoplasma phocacerebrale. This Mycoplasma was isolated in an epidemic of seal disease occurring in the Baltic Sea. Notes
External links
Working with Marine Mammals and Your Health, NOAA brochure on zoonoses, including seal finger. (requires Acrobat Reader (via archive.org))
Rufinamide is an anticonvulsant medication. It is used in combination with other medication and therapy to treat Lennox–Gastaut syndrome and various other seizure disorders. Rufinamide, a triazole derivative, was developed in 2004 by Novartis Pharma, AG, and is manufactured by Eisai. Rufinamide was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on November 14, 2008, as adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in children four years and older and adults. Its official FDA-approved labeling does not mention use in the treatment of partial seizures inasmuch as clinical trials submitted to the FDA were marginal. However, several recent clinical trials suggest that the drug has efficacy for partial seizures  It is marketed under the brand name Banzel. It is also marketed in the European Union under the brand name Inovelon.The mechanism of action of rufinamide is not fully understood. There is some evidence that rufinamide can modulate the gating of voltage-gated sodium channels, a common target for antiepileptic drugs. A recent study indicates subtle effects on the voltage-dependence of gating and the time course of inactivation in some sodium channel isoforms that could reduce neuronal excitability. However, this action cannot explain the unique spectrum of activity of rufinamide. References
External links
"Rufinamide". Drug Information Portal. U.S. National Library of Medicine.