Clonorchiasis in Jilin Province.

Clonorchiasis has a long history in Jilin Province but epidemiological surveyswere carried out only recently. Community infection was reported from the suburbs ofJilin City, Yongji County and Yinmahe of Jiutai County, mainly among the Korean     

Purine metabolism in Schistosoma japonicum.

Considering the importance of the purine metabolism in S. japonicum, the freepurine components and the activities of adenosine phosphorylase and ATPase have beenstudied. Evidence was presented that the ATP was rapidly converted to hypoxanthineby the worm homogenates. The dynamics of the conversion of ~3H-adenosine by adeno-     

Native-born Chinese Women’s Experiences in Medical Encounters in the U.S.

Native-born Chinese women’s experiences with medical help seeking in the U.S. is poorly understood, including how life phase affects it. Focus groups with middle-aged and older immigrant Chinese women explored: a) behaving assertively with doctors, b) strategies for assertiveness, c) characteristics of “ideal” doctors. Assertiveness was described as a reciprocal behavioral process between patient and doctor. Responsibility for initiating the process was seen as resting with doctors. Patient assertiveness goals included obtaining information and referrals. Strategies for achieving goals included not mentioning low-priority medical concerns in order to increase odds of obtaining referrals, and switching doctors when dissatisfied with communication. Older women reported refusing medical treatment due to language barriers. Cultural values, reported to be rooted in Confucianism, were identified by participants as shaping their help seeking. “Ideal” doctors were described as unhurried, and fully responsive to patient symptoms. Older women viewed “direct speaking” by doctors as always desirable around general information, and sometimes desirable around serious diagnoses. Older women perceived cultural differences with American-born Chinese providers. Findings are discussed in relation to continuity of care issues.

Poliomyelitis in Oman. I. The last outbreak?

Since 1988, the Sultanate of Oman has experienced three outbreaks of paralytic poliomyelitis. The last outbreak occurred in December 1993 and involved two children aged 10 months and 4 1/2 years. The children had received five and four doses, respectively, of trivalent oral polio vaccine (OPV) and lived in the same village. Serum neutralizing antibody tests suggested that paralytic polio in these children was due to poor antibody response to OPV. Wild poliovirus type 1 was isolated from both patients, as well as from seven of ten close contacts of the older child, and one of eight contacts of the younger child. All contacts had received three to six doses of OPV. Genomic sequence studies indicated that the virus isolates belonged to a genotypic group prevalent in southern and western Asia, but differed markedly from virus isolated during the 1988/89 outbreak, suggesting another importation of poliovirus. In response to the outbreak, supplementary immunization with OPV was given to children <6 years of age, initially in the affected district, and subsequently to children in the whole country. This study demonstrates that immunization with three to six doses of OPV did not prevent infection with wild poliovirus. In those children with sub-optimal response to OPV, infection resulted in paralytic poliomyelitis. The outbreak remained localized in one village, indicating that the outbreak control measures were effective.     

Report on fourteen cases of myiasis in man in Shanxi.

Fourteen cases of myiasis were reported in our teaching hospital from 1973 to 1982.Various types were designated according to the clinical manifestations and the localiza-tion of the invading larvae, such as gastric and intestinal myiasis, ocular myiasis, au-     

Relationship between reproductive diapause and changes in the fatty acids in Culex tritaenior. hynchus Giles.

This paper presents the results or analysis on the fatty acid contont of various reproductive stagesof C.tritaeniorhynchus by gas chromatography during 1986-1988.It was found that there were 23-43kinds of fatty acids in the mosquito tissues,of which the predominant ingredients were palmitoleic,palmitic,oleic,linoleic,stearic,mystristic,lauric,arachidic,etc.The composition of these acids     

Hyperhomocysteinaemia in Beh?et's disease.

OBJECTIVE: Arterial and venous thrombosis are among the clinical features of Beh?et's disease (BD), the pathogenesis of which is not completely understood. In this study, we investigated whether hyperhomocysteinaemia, being a well known risk factor for thrombosis, is also a contributive risk factor for the arterial and venous thrombosis of BD. METHODS: Eighty-four patients fulfilling the criteria of the International Study Group for Beh?et's Disease (54 males, 30 females, mean age 36+/-9 yr) were enrolled. All the patients were carefully screened for a history of venous thrombosis and were separated into two groups with respect to thrombosis history. Thirty-six healthy individuals (23 males, 13 females), matched for age and sex with the BD group, were included as a negative control group. Patients were excluded if they had any condition that might affect plasma homocysteine concentration. As methotrexate (MTX) causes hyperhomocysteinaemia, we also included 29 rheumatoid arthritis patients (five males, 24 females) receiving MTX weekly. Fasting plasma homocysteine concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. The data were analysed with the chi(2) test and Student's t-test. RESULTS: The highest homocysteine concentrations were found in the MTX group (17.5+/-5.3 micromol/l). Mean plasma homocysteine concentrations in BD patients were significantly higher than in the healthy controls (11.5+/-5.3 vs. 8.8+/-3.1 micromol/l, P<0.001). Among BD patients with a history of thrombosis, 20 of 31 (64%) had hyperhomocysteinaemia, and this was significantly higher than in those without thrombosis (9%). On the other hand, there was no significant difference between patients with non-thrombotic BD and healthy controls (P>0.05). In patients with thrombosis, we found no correlation between the duration of the post-thrombotic period and homocysteine concentration. Among all the variables investigated, only hyperhomocysteinaemia was found to be related to thrombosis. CONCLUSION: Hyperhomocysteinaemia may be assumed to be an independent risk factor for venous thrombosis in BD. Unlike the factor V Leiden mutation, hyperhomocysteinaemia is a correctable risk factor. This finding might lead to new avenues in the prophylaxis of thrombosis in BD.     

Heart failure in the elderly:a U.S.perspective

Heart failure (HF) affects 5 million Americans,of whom three-fourths are over age 65 and half are over age 75.HF is currently the leading cause of hospitalization among older adults in the U.S.,and it is the most costly medical illness by a factor of almost two.In addition,it is anticipated that the number of older people with HF will double over the next 20- 25 years due to the progressive aging of the U.S.population. Despite the fact that HF is predominantly a disorder of the elderly,most clinical trials have enrolled primarily middle-aged patients,and many major trials have excluded patients over 75-80 years of age.This is of great clinical     

Kongressprogramm. 36. Deutsche Koloproktologen-Kongress vom 11. bis 13. März 2010 in München

Kongressprogramm

Kongressprogramm. 36. Deutsche Koloproktologen-Kongress vom 11. bis 13. M?rz 2010 in München     

HLA-DRB1 alleles genotyping in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in Chinese.

Objective: To explore the role of HLA-DRB_1 genes in the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the correlations between HLA-DR alleles and clinical manifestations of patients with RA. Methods: 86 patients and 106 race matched controls in whom HLADR typing was performed by the method of DNA amplification with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP)     

Novel Therapeutics in Psoriatic Arthritis. What Is in the Pipeline?

Purpose of Review

To highlight the recently approved therapeutic agents in psoriatic arthritis (PsA), drugs in the pipeline, as well as to discuss efficacy with regard to different clinical domains of PsA.

Recent Findings

More than 15 years ago, tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) were the first biologic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) that were approved for the treatment of PsA. Since then, multiple new therapeutic agents inhibiting other targets have emerged including biologics targeting interleukin (IL) 12/23, and IL 17 and oral agents targeting phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) and Janus kinases (JAKs). Many new agents with various modes of action including selective inhibition of IL 23, therapies promoting activated T cell apoptosis, inhibition of tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2), and more are under active assessment in ongoing clinical trials.

Summary

Effective therapies for treating PsA have emerged over the last 15 years and newer agents continue to be discovered, allowing greater therapeutic options for controlling psoriatic disease activity and preventing joint damage and disability. Personalized therapy for patients with PsA is now a possibility.

     

Human parasites in Nei Monggol Autonomous Region.

According to the investigations and reports during 1956-1982, 32 parasite species     

A survey of sandflies in Shanxi Province.

An investigation of the sandfly population in Shanxi over 12 years (1956-1959 and1975-1982) demonstrated the presence of five species: Phlebotomus chinensis Newstead1916; Phlebotomus mongolensis Sinton, 1928; Sergentomyia squamirostris Newstead, 1923;