Minimal intervention dentistry for managing dental caries – a review

This publication describes the history of minimal intervention dentistry (MID) for managing dental caries and presents evidence for various carious lesion detection devices, for preventive measures, for restorative and non‐restorative therapies as well as for repairing rather than replacing defective restorations. It is a follow‐up to the FDI World Dental Federation publication on MID, of 2000. The dental profession currently is faced with an enormous task of how to manage the high burden of consequences of the caries process amongst the world population. If it is to manage carious lesion development and its progression, it should move away from the ‘surgical’ care approach and fully embrace the MID approach. The chance for MID to be successful is thought to be increased tremendously if dental caries is not considered an infectious but instead a behavioural disease with a bacterial component. Controlling the two main carious lesion development related behaviours, i.e. intake and frequency of fermentable sugars, to not more than five times daily and removing/disturbing dental plaque from all tooth surfaces using an effective fluoridated toothpaste twice daily, are the ingredients for reducing the burden of dental caries in many communities in the world. FDI's policy of reducing the need for restorative therapy by placing an even greater emphasis on caries prevention than is currently done, is therefore, worth pursuing.     

急性白血病遗传学改变的预后分析及微小残留病检测

随着化疗、靶向治疗等技术的进展,白血病的治疗效果日益改善,但复发仍是一大难题。白血病微小残留病(MRD)是指患者达血液学完全缓解后体内仍残留106¹09/L白血病细胞计数的状态,为白血病复发的主要原因。因此,监测MRD具有重要的临床意义。近年来发现越来越多的异常表达基因有望用于MRD的检测,从而监测复发,提示预后。该文选取WT1(Wilms's tumor-1 gene)、尾型同源盒基因2和表皮生长因子受体通路底物8基因的临床意义予以综述。     

The minimal clinically important difference determined using item response theory models: an attempt to solve the issue of the association with baseline score

ObjectivesDetermining the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of questionnaires on an interval scale, the trait level (TL) scale, using item response theory (IRT) models could overcome its association with baseline severity. The aim of this study was to compare the sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), and predictive values (PVs) of the MCID determined on the score scale (MCID-Sc) or the TL scale (MCID-TL).Study Design and SettingThe MCID-Sc and MCID-TL of the MOS-SF36 general health subscale were determined for deterioration and improvement on a cohort of 1,170 patients using an anchor-based method and a partial credit model. The Se, Sp, and PV were calculated using the global rating of change (the anchor) as the gold standard test.ResultsThe MCID-Sc magnitude was smaller for improvement (1.58 points) than for deterioration (−7.91 points). The Se, Sp, and PV were similar for MCID-Sc and MCID-TL in both cases. However, if the MCID was defined on the score scale as a function of a range of baseline scores, its Se, Sp, and PV were consistently higher.ConclusionThis study reinforces the recommendations concerning the use of an MCID-Sc defined as a function of a range of baseline scores.     

Minimal Clinically Important Differences in the Six-Minute Walk Test and the Incremental Shuttle Walking Test

Simple walking tests are widely used for the assessment of functional status in patients with cardiorespiratory disorders. These tests require far less instrumentation than formal cardiopulmonary exercise tests, but they do require standardization of procedures to achieve reproducible results. The most widely used tests for patients with COPD are the 6-minute walking test (6MWT) and the incremental shuttle walking test (SWT). The 6MWT has been characterized in COPD patients with respect to reproducibility and responsivity to change in health status. The 6MWT results are correlated with pulmonary function, health-related quality of life, maximum exercise capacity, and mortality. The minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for the 6MWT is conservatively estimated to be 54–80 meters using both distributional and discriminative methods. For an individual patient, the 6MWT would need to change by about 86 meters to be statistically confident that there has been a change. The SWT has been less extensively validated than the 6MWT, but has similar reproducibility in COPD (CV = approximately 20%). The SWT results improve with pulmonary rehabilitation and bronchodilation, and are highly correlated with maximum oxygen consumption. There are no studies that address the issue of MCID for the SWT. In addition to the MCID, the design and interpretation of COPD clinical trials should take into account the severity of initial impairment, the asymmetry between positive and negative changes, the proportion of patients who show substantial improvement, and the costs and risks of the treatment.     

Prognostic significance of flow‐cytometry evaluation of minimal residual disease in children with acute myeloid leukaemia treated according to the AIEOP‐AML 2002/01 study protocol

In children with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML ), assessment of initial treatment response is an essential prognostic factor; methods more sensitive than morphology are still under evaluation. We report on the measurement of minimal residual disease (MRD ), by multicolour flow‐cytometry in one centralized laboratory, in 142 children with newly diagnosed AML enrolled in the Associazione Italiana di EmatoOncologia Pediatrica‐AML 2002/01 trial. At the end of the first induction course, MRD was <0·1% in 69, 0·1–1% in 16 and >1% in 51 patients. The 8‐year disease‐free survival (DFS ) of 125 children in morphological complete remission and with MRD <0·1%, 0·1–1% and ≥1% was 73·1 ± 5·6%, 37·8 ± 12·1% and 34·1 ± 8·8%, respectively (P  < 0·01). MRD was also available after the second induction course in 92/142 patients. MRD was ≥0·1% at the end of the first induction course in 36 patients; 13 reached an MRD <0·1% after the second one and their DFS was 45·4 ± 16·7% vs. 22·8 ± 8·9% in patients with persisting MRD ≥0·1% (P  = 0·037). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that MRD ≥0·1% after first induction course was, together with a monosomal karyotype, an independent adverse prognostic factor for DFS . Our results show that MRD detected by flow‐cytometry after induction therapy predicts outcome in patients with childhood AML and can help stratifying post‐remission treatment.     

Le « soi territorial » : propositions théoriques à partir d’une compréhension phénoménologique de la schizophrénie

ObjectivesThis theoretical paper discusses the integration of a “territorial self” alongside the minimal and narrative selves most commonly described by contemporary phenomenology and used by phenomenological psychopathology.MethodsWe start from the schizophrenic experience and the tools for understanding it, in order to highlight some limitations in the use of vocal communication within the clinical system to evoke phenomena that are a priori pre-linguistic.ResultsThis theoretical path, which requires an openness to clinical observation and intersubjectivity, leads to nosographic and therapeutic implications that seem useful to us from a phenomenological perspective.DiscussionFrom a nosographic standpoint, we discuss the (non-systematic) crossovers between the schizophrenic experience and the psychotic experience; whereas, from a therapeutic standpoint, the proposal of the territorial self allows us to insist on the fact that the clinical relationship is characterized as much by an analysis of experience and a discussion about it as it is by a joint practice and an experiential experience requiring a common ground.ConclusionsThe “territorial self” proves to be a fruitful and heuristic theoretical proposal, enriching nosographic debates in the field of psychosis, and contributing to a reflection on the practice of psychotherapy.     

Corticosterone-mediated microglia activation affects dendritic spine plasticity and motor learning functions in minimal hepatic encephalopathy

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) is characterized as cognitive deficits including memory and learning dysfunctions after liver injuries or hepatic diseases. Our understandings of neurological mechanisms of MHE-associated cognitive syndromes, however, are far from complete. In the current study we generated a mouse MHE model by repetitive administrations of thioacetamide (TAA), which induced hyperammonemia plus elevated proinflammatory cytokines in both the general circulation and motor cortex. MHE mice presented prominent motor learning deficits, which were associated with excess dendritic spine pruning in the motor cortex under 2-photon in vivo microscopy. The pharmaceutical blockade of glucocorticoid receptor or suppression of its biosynthesis further rescued motor learning deficits and synaptic protein loss. Moreover, MHE mice presented microglial activation, which can be alleviated after glucocorticoid pathway inhibition. In sum, our data demonstrates corticosterone-induced microglial activation, synaptic over-pruning and motor learning impairments in MHE, providing new insights for MHE pathogenesis and potential targets of clinical interventions.     

Total neoadjuvant therapy: Fact,fantasy, or fallacy?

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States for men and women, with an estimated 146,000 new cases per year - a staggering 53,000 patients die each year. Rectal cancer comprises a third of these patients, with a 5-year survival rate of 67%. Management of locally advanced rectal cancer in the U.S. had remained stagnant for more than a decade, with most of these patients being treated with long-course chemoradiotherapy, surgery, followed by adjuvant chemotherapy; adjuvant chemotherapy being administered despite lacking a high level of evidence. Over the past few years, with rectal cancer death rates exceeding 30% from metastatic disease, growing interest focused on the attributes of induction chemotherapy to eradicate minimal residual disease and purportedly increase survival. This led to the development of total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT). We now have high-quality data from randomized prospective trials to review the facts, fantasies, and fallacies of TNT.