Unicoronal suture autotransplantation in the rabbit

INTRODUCTION: Our hypothesis was that a neurocranial suture autograft will, when shielded from dura, grow and be incorporated into the calvarium. METHODS: Growth was monitored by marker separation in three isohistogenic groups of rabbits, between postnatal days 9 and 90. In order to simulate increased neurocapsular expansion force, the left-sided coronal suture of a group of 20 rabbits was immobilised with a resorbable suture on gestational day 25. The other group of 10 rabbits was sham-operated. On postnatal day 9, 10 of the experimental rabbits underwent transplantation of the suture contralateral to the defect resulting from extirpation of the immobilised suture. The transplant was shielded from dural influence by a platinum foil. RESULTS: The growth of the immobilised coronal sutures was severely impaired, and also that of the contralateral unicoronal sutures to a lesser extent. A significant catch-up of growth occurred in the transplanted unicoronal sutures. Overgrowth occurred at the donor sites. CONCLUSION: The results allow us to consider suture transplantation combined with endosteal dura stripping in craniosynostosis surgery.     

Prescription medications associated with a decreased risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Earlier epidemiologic studies have suggested an inverse association between non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and exposure to histamine(2) (H(2)) blockers, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, cholesterol-lowering drugs, and antibiotics. Data from the PHARMO database were used to conduct a nested, population-based case-control study that included 1985-1998 drug-dispensing records for 300,000 residents of six Dutch cities. Included were those subjects without a previous history of cancer who were aged >/=20 years and were registered with an incident primary discharge diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma between 1991 and 1998. This paper includes data on 211 cases and 800 controls individually matched on sex, age, community pharmacy, calendar time, and duration of follow-up. Conditional logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the association between non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and categories of cumulative drug use in days. In multivariate analyses, nonsignificant risk reductions were found for all drugs tested, and the negative association tended to increase with increasing duration of use. For women, the odds ratio for H(2) blockers was 0.29 (95% confidence interval: 0.12, 0.69) and for analgesics was 0.40 (95% confidence interval: 0.22, 0.71). Results support an inverse association between occurrence of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and use of H(2) blockers and analgesics among women, and they warrant confirmation in larger studies.     

Total parenteral feeding in infants using peripheral veins

Fifteen infants with life-threatening gastrointestinal anomalies received total parenteral feeding for periods ranging from 10 to 54 days; their ages ranged from one day to 5 months. The solutions were administered through peripheral veins. All patients gained weight during the period of observation and no cases of septicaemia were encountered.     

Perforated colorectal neoplasms: correlation of clinical, contrast enema, and CT examinations

Results of clinical, contrast enema (CE), and computed tomographic (CT) examinations in 39 patients with perforated colorectal neoplasms were retrospectively reviewed. Twenty patients were toxemic at initial presentation, but in only four patients was the diagnosis of perforated colorectal neoplasm initially suspected clinically. CE study was performed in 22 patients and enabled the diagnosis of perforated neoplasm in 11 cases, neoplasm alone in eight, and neither neoplasm nor perforation in three. CT was performed in 38 patients and enabled the diagnosis of perforated neoplasm in 36; pericolic phlegmon but no mass lesion was evident in two. In 16 patients, CT also demonstrated metastatic disease. Because of its reliability in establishing the diagnosis and staging the extent of the inflammatory and neoplastic disease, CT is indicated in cases of suspected or proved perforated colorectal neoplasm and in cases in which CE study findings are indeterminate or suggestive of perforated neoplasm.     

Environmental stress increases extracellular dopamine in striatum of 6-hydroxydopamine-treated rats: in vivo microdialysis studies

Bilateral intraventricular injections of 6-hydroxydopamine depleted dopamine (DA) in striatal tissue of rats by 88%. Tail shock increased DA in striatal extracellular fluid of these rats from 10 to 17 pg/20 microliters as measured by microdialysis, values less than half those seen in normal striatum. The increase was observed even in rats that were akinetic. DA in extracellular fluid after stress was negatively correlated with behavioral performance. Thus, residual nigrostriatal DA neurons are responsive to stress but do not produce normal DA levels in striatal extracellular fluid.     

Breast MRI: Early experience with a 3-D fat-suppressed Gradient Echo Sequence in the evaluation of breast lesions

The early clinical experience with a 3-Dimensional Fourier Transform Gradient Echo sequence with fat suppression in the evaluation of breast masses is reported. Ten female patients with breast malignancies were pre-operatively evaluated with this sequence and the results compared with the pathological specimens. The scanning protocol included a noncontrast sequence followed by an immediate post-contrast sequence (completed 4.5 min after intravenous contrast injection) and a delayed sequence. Images were assessed for maximum lesion and parenchymal enhancement, lesion size and additional enhancing abnormalities. In six patients, malignant masses enhanced maximally on the immediate post-contrast sequence with parenchyma enhancing maximally on delayed images. In three cases, there was preferential enhancement of malignant lesions over normal parenchyma but to a similar degree on both post-contrast sequences. In one case, both the lesion and parenchyma enhanced maximally on the delayed sequence. Magnetic resonance assessed lesion size accurately and also detected satellite malignancies in one case. However, lesion grade, associated in situ carcinoma and lymphovascular invasion did not impact on lesion enhancement. In this small series, a contrast-enhanced, fat-suppressed 3-D Gradient Echo Sequence detected breast carcinoma with high sensitivity. The technique holds promise but further evaluation is required.