Risk of death from acute pancreatitis

Summary Conclusions The analysis of all the data available in 192 patients at 24 h from admission shows that only serum glucose above 250 mg/dL (13.88 mmol/L) and serum creatinine above 2 mg/dL (176.8 μmol/L) are prognostic factors of death (P<0.0001). When, however, pathological chest X-rays are also considered in a subset of 149 patients, these and serum creatinine are prognostic factors of death with odds ratios of 2.9 (95% CL 1.3–6.3) and 9.4 (95% CL 2.2–40.7), respectively (P<0.0001). Background In patients suffering from acute pancreatitis, neither Ranson scores nor Glasgow criteria evaluation at 24 h yield a sufficiently reliable prognosis of the risk of death from the first acute attack. Methods After excluding posttraumatic, postsurgical, and post-ERCP acute pancreatitis, we selected 192 consecutive patients admitted in the first instance to our center for a first attack, distinguishing between patients who died and patients who survived. We used Cox's model to analyze the prognostic weight of variables available within 24 h of admission (sex, age, alcohol intake, smoking habits, 17 biochemical tests, body mass index, chest X-rays, body temperature, and shock status). Results Seventeen (8.8%) patients died; mortality showed a decreasing trend over the period of years considered and was correlated, among other things, with necrotizing type of pancreatitis, idiopathic etiology, and shock status on admission.     

均衡组间差异的有效方法:倾向评分

目的：实例介绍倾向评分法的基本原理和适用条件，设计适用于分析二分类资料的SAS宏程序。方法：运用倾向评分比较平衡前后两组间差异的改变情况，评价放弃心肺复苏急救与充血性心力衰竭患者院内死亡的联系。结果：采用分层法和匹配法都可以有效地平衡两组各个特征变量间所存在的高度差异，三种分析方法获得相近的估计结果。结论：倾向评分法是均衡组间差异的有效方法，能够匹配和平衡各个特征变量的作用，并用于分析各种观察性研究资料。     

CT影像学评分预测急性胰腺炎病情及转归的研究

目的 探讨CT影像学评分对急性胰腺炎病情和转归的预测价值。方法 回顾性分析入院后经CT检查的急性胰腺炎46例，按一定的规则对每例患进行CT影像学评分与分型，并与临床治疗中的有关资料进行对照。结果 46例患CT评分后获得：轻型24例，中型13例，重型9例。轻型患较重型住院日少、恢复顺利，中转手术及死亡率均以重型为高。结论 CT评分对急性胰腺炎病情及预后评估具有重要意义。     

Differences in clinical characteristics between Tourette syndrome patients with and without 'generalized tics' or coprolalia

Abstract  The purpose of this study is to examine whether there are differences in clinical characteristics between Tourette syndrome (TS) patients with and without 'generalized tics' (GT) which involve the entire body, and/or coprolalia. Subjects were 64 patients (55 males and 9 females, mean age, 17.4 ± 7.2 years) who visited Tokyo University's outpatient clinic of neuropsychiatry from 1974 to 1993 and who met criteria for Tourette's disorder of DSM-III-R. Data on clinical characteristics, including tic symptoms and courses of their development, complications and developmental histories, treatment and severity, were collected by systematic chart review of all subjects. Tourette syndrome patients with 'generalized tics' tended to show multiple complex vocal tics more frequently than TS patients without GT. Tourette syndrome patients with coprolalia tended to show significantly higher rates of copropraxia, echolalia, and 'cleaning/washing' compulsion than did the TS patients without coprolalia. Tourette syndrome patients with both GT and coprolalia were classified as the severest group in terms of tic symptoms and social impairment. Tourette syndrome patients who had neither of these morbidities were classified into the mildest group in all aspects. Generalized tics and coprolalia seemed to indicate the severest end of the TS spectrum and seemed to be related with a need of intensive treatment.     

Early Stroke Recognition: Developing an Out-of-hospital NIH Stroke Scale

Objective : To develop an abbreviated and practical neurologic scale that could assist emergency medical services or triage personnel in identifying patients with stroke.
Methods : A prospective, observational, cohort study was performed at university-based EDs. Participants were 74 patients treated in a thrombolytic stroke trial and 225 consecutive non-stroke patients evaluated during 4 random 12-hour shifts in the ED. Scores on the NIH Stroke Scale were obtained for all patients by physicians. Items of this scale were modified and recoded to a binomial (normal or abnormal) scale. Serial univariate analyses using χ² were performed to rank items. Recursive partitioning was then performed to develop the decision rule for predicting the presence of stroke.
Results : Three items identified 100% of patients with stroke: facial palsy, motor arm, and dysarthria. An Abbreviated NIH Stroke Scale based on these items had a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 92%. A proposed Out-of-hospital NIH Stroke Scale consisting of facial palsy, motor arm, and a combination of dysarthria and best language items (abnormal speech) had a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 88%.
Conclusion : Using the derivation data set, a proposed Out-of-hospital NIH Stroke Scale had a high sensitivity and specificity for identifying patients with stroke when performed by physicians in this group of 299 ED patients. Prospective studies of other health care professionals using the scale in the out-of-hospital arena are needed.     

Restless legs syndrome in Parkinson's disease: a case-controlled study.

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a disorder of motor activity with a circadian pattern, occurring frequently in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). We sought to estimate the prevalence of RLS in Indian PD patients. One hundred twenty-six consecutive PD patients and 128 healthy age- and sex-matched controls were evaluated using a predesigned questionnaire. RLS was present in 10 of 126 cases of PD (7.9%) and 1 of 128 controls (0.8%, P = 0.01). PD patients with RLS were older than those without RLS (63.70 +/- 7.80 years vs. 57.37 +/- 10.04 years; P = 0.05) and had higher prevalence of depression (40% vs. 10.3%; P = 0.023). No demographic factors or factors related to PD correlated with the presence or severity of RLS. RLS is more common among patients with PD than controls. A greater medical recognition of this disorder is needed in view of available effective treatment.     

Alexithymia in Holocaust Survivors with and Without PTSD

Alexithymia was measured in non-treatment seeking, community-dwelling Holocaust survivors using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale—Twenty Item Version (TAS-20). Scores of survivors with (n = 30) and without (n = 26) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were compared, and associations among alexithymia, severity of trauma, and severity of PTSD symptoms were determined. Survivors with PTSD had significantly higher scores on the TAS-20 compared to survivors without PTSD. TAS-20 scores were significantly associated with severity of PTSD symptoms, but not with severity of trauma. This study adds to our knowledge of the relationship between alexithymia and trauma by demonstrating that this characteristic is related to the presence of posttraumatic symptoms and not simply exposure to trauma.     

实验性急性胰腺炎肺内细胞凋亡状况及其意义的初步探讨

目的：探讨重症急性胰腺炎时肺内细胞凋亡的状况及其在肺损伤发病机制中的意义。方法：以不同浓度牛磺胆酸钠液逆行胰胆管注射造成大急急性水肿性胰腺炎（AEP)与急性坏死性胰腺炎(ANP)两种模型，测定血浆TNF-α与内毒素水平的动态变化，免疫组化检测肺内TNF-α的表达，并以TUNEL法结合激光扫描共聚焦显微镜检测肺组织切片内细胞凋亡的情况。结果：正常时大鼠肺内偶见淋巴细胞及纤维母细胞等发生凋亡，诱导AEP或ANP后凋亡细胞数量无明显变化。随着肺损伤的出现，少许浸润的炎细胞、肺泡上皮细胞及血管内皮细胞等发生了凋亡。凋亡指数(‰)在ANP组呈一过性下降，在ANP组表现为持续下降，在6h后各时点均显著低于AEP组相应值(P＜0．05)。分析表明，ANP组血中TNF-α、内毒素含量的增加与凋亡指数的变化存在负相关(P＜0.05)。结论：ANP时肺内浸润的以中性粒细胞为代表的大量炎细胞出现延迟凋亡，这种现象可能是肺损伤发生的重要前提，同时内毒素血症及TNF-α的过度合成可能是中性粒细胞延迟凋亡的部分原因。     

350例膝关节镜检查分析

自1981年以来进行了350例膝关节镜检查。明确诊断340例(97.1%),纠正诊断52例(14.7%),补充诊断47例(13.4%)。关节镜检查不仅有助于确定临床诊断,而且提高了手术的准确性。