A new adhesive bone conduction hearing system as a treatment option for transient hearing loss after middle ear surgery

European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - The objective of this prospective, single-subject, repeated measures study was to evaluate the audiological benefit and patient satisfaction with an...     

Hepatic reticuloendothelial function during parenteral nutrition including an MCT/LCT or LCT emulsion after liver transplantation – a double-blind study

It has been demonstrated that total parenteral nutrition (TPN) modulates the function of the hepatic reticuloendothelial system (RES). The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of two different TPN lipid emulsions on the recovery of allograft RES function after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLTx). In a prospective, double-blind study, OLTx patients were randomly assigned to two treatment groups. Group I ( n=13) received a TPN regimen that included long-chain triglycerides (LCT). Group II ( n=9) received a TPN regimen that included a fat emulsion consisting of both medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) and LCT. At baseline, i.e., on days 2 or 3 after OLTx ( t1), before lipids for TPN were started, hepatic RES function was determined using the human serum albumin millimicrosphere technique (K-value, 1/min). A second measurement ( t2) was obtained after 7 days of TPN, including one of the study's two fat emulsions. The mean (+/- SD) K-value (1/min) was 0.48+/-0.16 in the LCT group and 0.55+/-0.28 in the MCT/LCT group at t1, and it improved to 0.62+/-0.21 in the LCT group and to 0.86+/-0.32 in the MCT/LCT group at t2. RES function recovery was significantly better in the MCT/LCT group ( P< or = 0.05). MCT/LCT emulsion appears to be the TPN fat emulsion of choice after OLTx as it seems to have less impact on hepatic RES recovery.     

Lifestyle determinants and mortality in German vegetarians and health-conscious persons: results of a 21-year follow-up.

BACKGROUND: The long-term observation of vegetarians in affluent countries can provide insight into the relative effects of a vegetarian diet and lifestyle factors on mortality. METHODS: A cohort study of vegetarians and health-conscious persons in Germany was followed-up prospectively for 21 years, including 1,225 vegetarians and 679 health-conscious nonvegetarians. Standardized mortality ratios compared with the German general population were calculated for all causes and specific causes. Within the cohort, Poisson regression modeling was used to investigate the joint effects of several risk factors on overall and cause-specific mortality. RESULTS: Standardized mortality ratios for all-cause mortality was significantly below 100: 59 [95% confidence interval (95% CI), 54-64], predominantly due to a deficit of deaths from circulatory diseases. Within the cohort, vegetarian compared with nonvegetarian diet had no effect on overall mortality [rate ratio (RR), 1.10; 95% CI, 0.89-1.36], whereas moderate and high physical activity significantly reduced risk of death (RR, 0.62, 0.64), adjusted for age, sex, smoking, alcohol intake, body mass index, and educational level. Vegetarian diet was however associated with a reduced RR of 0.70 (95% CI, 0.41-1.18) for ischemic heart disease, which could partly be related to avoidance of meat. CONCLUSIONS: Both vegetarians and nonvegetarian health-conscious persons in this study have reduced mortality compared with the general population. Within the study, low prevalence of smoking and moderate or high level of physical activity but not strictly vegetarian diet was associated with reduced overall mortality. The nonsignificant reduction in mortality from ischemic heart diseases in vegetarians compared with health-conscious persons could be explained in part by avoidance of meat intake.     

A Comparison of the Periodontal Health of Patients during Treatment with the Invisalign? System and with Fixed Orthodontic Appliances

Objective:   

Evaluation of the periodontal health in patients during treatment with either fixed orthodontic appliances or the Invisalign^® system.     

Evaluation of non-invasive blood pressure measurement by the Finapres method at rest and during dynamic exercise in subjects with cardiovascular insufficiency

The accuracy and precision of the Finapres in recording rest and exercise blood pressure compared with the intra-arterial (aortic and brachial) and random-zero sphygmomanometer methods was assessed in 84 ischaemic patients in three different studies. Firstly, comparison at rest with the aortic intraarterial pressure in 50 ischaemic patients demonstrated that the Finapres systolic (136.5 ± 21.1 vs. 129.3 ± 19.0 mmHg;p < 0.001) and mean (92.4 ± 13.4 vs. 90.7 ± 11.4 mmHg;p < 0.001) arterial pressures were higher and diastolic pressures lower (70.4 ± 11.5 vs. 71.5 ± 9.8 mmHg;p < 0.001). The reproducibility of the Finapres and invasive method was similar for systolic (4.6% vs. 4.0%), diastolic (2.8% vs. 2.7%) and mean (3.3% vs. 3.0%) blood pressures. Second, in seven subjects studied twice at rest and during 4 min supine bicycle exercise, the exercise increase in blood pressure was greater on the Finapres compared with the brachial intra-arterial pressure (systolic +10.2 ± 6.3 vs. +3.6 ± 9.8 mmHg; diastolic +9.6 ± 11.1 vs. +0.2 ± 2.1 mmHg;p = 0.02 for each); however, at steady-state the peak/trough differences in pressure between the methods were similar. Thirdly, compared under rest conditions, to random zero sphygmomanometer (RZO), the Finapres systolic pressure was higher (6.8 ± 3.5 mmHg) and diastolic pressure lower (–6.0 ± 1.9 mmHg). During upright bicycle exercise, the difference between the Finapres and RZO in systolic blood pressure increased at each level of exercise (+14.3 ± 4.2, +17.9 ± 4.0 and +22.2 ± 4.1 mmHg respectively at each exercise stage:p < 0.01). For RZO, diastolic blood pressure fell as exercise workload increased whereas Finapres diastolic blood pressure increased on exercise (3.1 ± 2.6, 7.0 ± 2.1 and 8.1 ± 2.0 mmHg respectively:p < 0.01). Thus there were systematic differences between the values recorded by the Finapres and proximal blood pressure methods and limited agreement in the rest to exercise increments related to light exercise. Calibration of the Finapres values in terms of the other methods is limited by the variable relationship to these related changes in arterial distensibility.     

Decreased sensitivity to experimental pain in adjustment disorder.

An altered perception of pain has been described for several psychiatric disorders. To date the influence of adjustment disorders (AD) on pain perception has not been described. Here, we investigated perception of experimentally induced pain in 15 patients suffering from AD (subtype with depressive symptoms) and controls matched for age and sex. Thresholds and tolerances were assessed for thermal and electrical pain on both sides of the body. We found an overall increase of pain thresholds and tolerances in AD patients as compared to controls, predominately on the right side of the body. Analogue findings have been reported for pain perception in major depressive disorder (MDD). Of the data obtained, only thermal pain threshold on the right arm correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms. Although the underlying pathology is elusive it is likely that the mechanisms for reduced pain sensitivity are comparable in MDD and AD.     

Uniparental disomy 7 in Silver--Russell syndrome and primordial growth retardation

Maternal uniparental disomy for the entire chromosome 7 hasso far been reported in three patients with intrauterine andpostnatal growth retardation. Two were detected because theywere homozygous for a cystic fibrosis mutation for which onlythe mother was heterozygous, and one because he was homozygousfor a rare COL1A2 mutation. We investigated 35 patients witheither the Silver-Russell syndrome or primordial growth retardationand their parents with PCR markers to search for uniparentaldisomy 7. Four of 35 patients were found to have maternal disomy,including three with isodisomy and one with heterodisomy. Thedata confirm the hypothetical localization of a maternally imprintedgene (or more than one such gene) on chromosome 7. It is suggestedto search for UPD 7 in families with an offspring with sporadicSilver-Russell syndrome or primordial growth retardation.     

Phenotype and functional analysis of human monocyte-derived dendritic cells loaded with biodegradable poly(lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres for immunotherapy

Dendritic cells (DC) are increasingly explored as cellular vaccines for tumor immunotherapy. In most reported DC-based cancer vaccine trials, DC have been pulsed with soluble tumor antigen-derived peptide ligands of MHC molecules. Considering that the half-life of peptide/MHC complexes on the cell surface is relatively short and that soluble exogenous protein antigens cannot be efficiently processed via the MHC class I-processing pathway, the current vaccination procedure is not optimal for the induction of strong T cell responses aiming at tumor rejection. Recently, we have shown that antigen presentation can be prolonged when synthetic peptides were encapsulated in biodegradable poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) microspheres (MS) for uptake by DC. In the present study, we investigated the phenotypic and functional consequences of MS uptake by human monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MoDC) in vitro. We found that immature MoDC that were prepared in serum free media suitable for clinical application were able to phagocytose high numbers of MS, while matured MoDC showed a reduced capacity for phagocytosis of MS. The ingestion of MS did not change the cell surface expression of CD80, CD83, CD86 and HLA-DR of immature and mature DC, suggesting that MS uptake did not induce DC maturation but that maturation by cytokines or LPS was unaltered in the presence of MS. Furthermore, MS-loaded mature MoDC expressed normal levels of the chemokine receptor CCR7 and migrated as efficiently towards CCL19 or CCL21 as unloaded MoDC. DC viability and the secretion of TNF-alpha and IL-12 was not significantly changed by MS loading. Taken together, our data indicate that PLGA-MS loading has no negative effects on the pivotal properties of MoDC in vitro. It should therefore be feasible to further develop this antigen loading strategy for clinical use in immunotherapy against viral infections and tumors.