Surgery for morbid obesity

Although jejunoileal bypass surgery proved effective in controlling morbid obesity, the serious adverse effects from the operation were ultimately found to outweigh the benefits. Gastric partitioning results in weight loss by restricting the volume of food ingested rather than by interfering with absorption. Vertical banded gastroplasty has fewer complications than Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and is currently the surgical procedure of choice for morbid obesity.     

Clinical significance of quantitative studies of cell nucleus in lymphocytes of the cerebrospinal fluid in leukemia]

The nuclear content, area and perimeter of the nucleus of lymphocytes in the C.S.F. were determined quantitatively by means of image analysis technique. 26 cases of central nervous system lymphocytic leukemia (CNLL), and 8 suspected cases were studied, other 56 cases who did not have leukemic and neoplastic diseases and had normal C.S.F. lymphocytes were taken as a control. Our data showed that all the mean nuclear content (MNC), mean nuclear area (MNA), mean nuclear perimeter (MNP), and the maximum and minimum nuclear contents of the 2 groups of former patients were obviously higher than those of the contral (P less than 0.01). These results presented suggestion that the image analysis technique can be used for differentiating the leukemic lymphocyte from normal one especially in suspected cases, and thus the diagnosis of CNLL might be improved.     

A case of Ullrich disease with distinct pathological change of muscular dystrophy

A case of Ullrich disease was presented. The patient was a 3-year-old girl with torticollis, generalized muscle weakness and acroatonia since birth. High-arched palate, protruded calcaneus, and mild contracture of proximal joints were also recognized. Intellectual development was normal. Serum level of CPK was slightly increased. In histological and histochemical examinations of quadriceps femoris muscle, proliferated connective tissue, marked variation in the muscle fiber diameter, and a lot of degenerated and regenerated fibers were recognized. Minimal injury easily causes subcutaneous hemorrhage, but no abnormality was found in the structure of collagen.     

Behavioral state-specific changes in human hippocampal theta activity

Although there has been extensive examination of the behavioral and physiologic correlates of hippocampal theta activity in animals, the human literature consists of a single case study. We investigated the differential effects of four behavioral states on human hippocampal theta activity in 16 epilepsy surgery patients. Behavioral conditions included resting eyes closed (RC), resting eyes open (RO), eyes open with auditory word activation (AW), and eyes open with visuospatial activation (VS). Hippocampal theta activity decreased during both RO and VS compared to both RC and AW. There were reciprocal changes in delta activity. Comparisons of RO to VS and of RC to AW were nonsignificant. The results demonstrate state-specific changes in human hippocampal theta and are consistent with the animal literature that relates hippocampal theta to sensorimotor integration and forebrain volitional mechanisms.     

Short and middle latency vestibular evoked responses to acceleration in man.

We have succeeded in recording short and middle latency vestibular evoked responses in human subjects. The head was held rigidly in a special, patented head holder, constructed individually for each subject, which gripped the teeth of the upper jaw. The stimulus consisted of 2/sec steps of angular acceleration impulses produced by a special motor with intensities of about 10,000 degrees/sec 2 and with a rise time of 1-2 msec. The electrical activity was recorded as the potential difference between special forehead and mastoid electrodes having a large, secure contact area with the skin. The activity was digitally filtered and averaged in 2 separate channels by means of a Microshev 2000 evoked response system. The short latency responses, with peaks at about 3.5 msec (forehead positive), 6.0 msec (forehead negative) and 8.4 msec (forehead positive; bandpass: 200-2000 Hz; average of 1024 trials), had amplitudes of about 0.5 microV. The middle latency responses had peaks at about 8.8 msec (forehead positive), 18.8 msec (forehead negative) and 26.8 msec (forehead positive; 30-300 Hz; N = 128 trials), with larger amplitudes (about 15 microV). These responses were consistently recorded in the same subject at different times and were similar in different normal subjects. Strenuous control experiments were conducted in order to ensure that these responses are not artefacts due to the movement of conducting media (head, electrodes and leads) in the electromagnetic field of the motor and are elicited by activation of normal labyrinths.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Ultrastructural changes in the blood-brain barrier after nimodipine treatment and induced hypertension

Fourty-four narcotized rats were split into two equal groups, one being treated with nimodipine and the other with a placebo. By use of norfenefrine the blood pressure was raised to values of 150 and 180 mm Hg within the limits of the autoregulation of brain perfusion and under continuous measurement. Fifteen minutes after application of the standard tracer, horseradish peroxidase, the animals were exsanguinated using a saline perfusion and then perfusion-fixed with Karnovsky's solution. After development of the peroxidase staining the brain sections were evaluated and then allocated to their respective groups. In brain tissues from the experimental group significantly more frequent perivascular accumulations of horseradish peroxidase reaction product were found (P less than 0.001). In electron micrographs it could be seen that the tight junctions were intact and that there was a neuroendothelial transport, with horseradish peroxidase-filled vesicles, in the endothelium, muscle cells, and brain parenchyma. These vesicles represent a medium of transport for all proteins of high molecular weight and can therefore result in brain edema. It is concluded that nimodipine damages the blood-brain barrier by disturbance of the autoregulation of the cerebral blood flow.