EEG findings in the persistent vegetative state.

The definition of the persistent vegetative state (PVS) is relatively straightforward, but its diagnosis can be challenging. We reviewed a series of EEG performed in patients with PVS to assess the diagnostic value of EEG. We reviewed records of all hospital patients with a diagnosis of persistent vegetative PVS. EEG findings included normal, continuous generalized slowing, intermittent generalized slowing, background slowing, background suppression, alpha, generalized periodic pattern, PLEDS, and triphasic waves. EEG findings had no association with etiology and varied from one pattern to another in the same patients' EEGs obtained at different times (see table). We conclude that EEG findings in PVS are heterogeneous and too variable to be of diagnostic value.     

处女膜修补手术及麻醉方法的改进

目的；增大处女膜粘膜瓣的接触面，减少因麻醉造成的处女膜粘膜水肿，提高修复手术的成功率。方法：手术全部采用1％的卡因行粘膜表面麻醉。53例采用瓦合粘膜瓣法，3例用瓦合粘膜瓣联合阴道粘膜瓣修复法。结果：56例术后一月随访，53例处女膜孔径为一指，成功率94．64％。结论：采用1％的卡因粘膜表面麻醉，瓦合粘膜瓣法及瓦合粘膜联合阴道粘膜瓣修复法对处女膜修复是行之有效的。     

Buccal mucosal graft for urethral reconstruction.

Urethral reconstruction with graft substances, such as skin and bladder mucosa, has been previously used when primary anastomosis cannot be achieved. However, stricture and meatal prolapse are associated with these grafts. We report the use of buccal mucosa for the reconstruction of urethral defects in 3 patients. One patient with failed operation for hypospadias received tube buccal mucosal graft for urethral replacement. Two patients with urethral necrosis and stricture received onlay buccal mucosal graft. All patients were disease-free during follow-up (range, 12 to 49 months; mean, 36 months). One patient had a pinhole fistula that was successfully managed with simple repair. This technique appears to be useful for urethral reconstruction when a local graft is not available, even in patients with complicated conditions.     

咳喘"冬病夏治"临床应用

"冬病夏治"法意即冬天易发作的病,在夏天(特指伏天)提前预防性治疗的一种特色疗法.寒性咳喘是我国北方冬季的常见病、多发病.我院针灸科从1983年开始,每年伏天运用针药并用外敷治疗寒性咳喘的"冬病夏治"法,治愈数千例患者,取得了很好的疗效.     

Evaluation of Class I ART restorations in Brazilian schoolchildren: three-year results

Atraumetic Restorative Treatment (ART) has been adopted around the world to avoid unnecessary extractions, especially in non-industrialized countries The development of specific glass ionomer cements marketed for the ART technique has contributed to the technical success rate. In this study. Ketac-Molar^a (3M ESPE. Dental Medzn Germany) was used to restore 150 Class I cavities in 118 Brazilian public school children, aged from 7–12 years. At baseline and at subsequent recalls. CPI probes with a ball-end of 0.5 millimeters (mm) were used to assess loss of restorative material, and photographic color transparencies of restorations were made. After six months. 83 patients returned for follow-up examinations, with 71.8% of their restorations designated as acceptable. After three years. 49 patients with 57 ART-restorations were evaluated, with 21.0% of these restorations graded as acceptable Another 29.8% of their restorations had been replaced by more permanent materials. The main objective of the ART technique is tooth retention; this was achieved for 94.7% of the restored teeth in a high caries risk population who returned for recalls.     

Palmitic acid as an excipient in implants for sustained release of insulin

Sustained-release implants for insulin can be made by compressing a powder admixture with palmitic acid as the excipient. At less than 20%, insulin does not disperse uniformly in the admixture. The size distribution of the excipient particles obtained after grinding for 15 min does not affect the sustained release action. When tested in a 33 d period, an 1/8-size piece (approximately 25 mg) implant cut from a pellet disc containing 20% insulin which is 13 mm in diameter and 1.5 mm thick released 0.12-0.17 mg insulin/d in diabetic Wistar rats. The 1/8-size piece containing 20% insulin or a rod of similar weight with a diameter of 3 mm, which can be inserted by a trocar, was optimal for the implant to provide a service-life of 49 +/- 7 d. The service-life decreased with progressive reduction in implant size. The implant functioned just as well subcutaneously or intraperitoneally and was eroded subcutaneously by 33.6-53.1% in 33 d. The glycosylated haemoglobin contents of diabetic animals on implant therapy which had a blood glucose level of 4.7 +/- 2.5 mmol/l were in a range of 6.2-8.9% compared to the control value of greater than 13% with chronic hyperglycemia. The overall results indicated that the implant was a promising alternative to daily insulin injections.     

Chronic encapsulated intracerebral haematoma.

We report a rare chronic encapsulated intracerebral haematoma (CEICH). A 52-year-old man had two seizures. Unenhanced computed tomography scanning of the head revealed a hypodense tumour with clusters of calcification in the left temporal lobe. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed a left temporal tumour with a hypointense centre and hyperintense periphery on T(1)-weighted imaging and heterogeneous hypointensity on T(2)-weighted imaging. The tumour was heterogeneously enhanced after gadolinium injection. Craniotomy was carried out and a CEICH in the left temporal lobe was completely excised. No vascular anomaly was found. The tumour was histologically confirmed to be a CEICH. The patient recovered well after the operation. In this report, we describe this rare case and discuss the characteristics of CEICH.     

Microarray analysis of healing rat Achilles tendon: evidence for glutamate signaling mechanisms and embryonic gene expression in healing tendon tissue.

Tendon healing is a complex process consisting of a large number of intricate pathways roughly divided into the phases of inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Although these processes have been extensively studied at a variety of levels in recent years, there is still much that remains unknown. This study used microarray analyses to investigate the process at a genetic level in healing rat Achilles tendon at 1, 7, and 21 days postinjury, roughly representing the inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling phases. An interesting temporal expression profile was demonstrated, identifying both known and novel genes and pathways involved in the progression of tendon healing. Both inflammatory response and pro-proliferative genes were shown to be significantly upregulated from 24 h postinjury through to 21 days. Day 7 showed the largest increase in genetic activity, particularly with the expression of collagens and other extracellular matrix genes. Interestingly, there was also evidence of central nervous system-like glutamate-based signaling machinery present in tendon cells, as has recently been shown in bone. This type of signaling mechanism has not previously been shown to exist in tendon. Another novel finding from these analyses is that there appears to be several genes upregulated during healing which have exclusively or primarily been characterized as key modulators of proliferation and patterning during embryonic development. This may suggest that similar pathways are employed in wound healing as in the tightly regulated progression of growth and development in the embryo. These results could be of use in designing novel gene-based therapies to increase the efficacy and efficiency of tendon healing.     

Significance of Anticardiolipin Antibodies on Short and Long Term Allograft Survival and Function following Kidney Transplantation

The significance of anticardiolipin antibodies (ACAs) prior to renal transplantation is unclear. We studied a cohort of 337 patients who underwent renal transplantation from 1996 to 2001. Follow-up continued until allograft loss, patient death or 31 December 2002. The primary outcome was a composite endpoint of death-censored allograft loss or a 25% reduction in estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) from 1-month post-transplant. Secondary outcomes were allograft loss, a 25% reduction in GFR, acute rejection and creatinine at 1 year. IgG and IgM ACA titers were positive (> or =15) in 18.1% of recipients. There were no significant differences at baseline between recipients, except coumadin therapy in those with positive ACA titers (20% vs. 7.4%). Post-transplant, there was no increase in the primary outcome in ACA-positive patients, even after adjustment for anticoagulation with coumadin (HR = 1.42 [0.68, 2.96]). There was no difference in secondary outcomes between those with or without positive titers. Two of five patients with very high titers (>50) who were not anticoagulated had early graft loss. A positive ACA titer prior to kidney transplantation was not associated with inferior renal outcomes after transplantation, although more research is required to address the prognostic significance of very high ACA titers.